Gardenia
by Babykoalaprincess
Summary: You have two options, Harkinian. You can go home, or go big. Pick which one you want," he said, as he smirked with delight. He raised his sword, for he knew that she would take the easy way out. She gritted her teeth. "No, Link. I'll fight." HS fic
1. New Beginnings

**Disclaimer: I do not own Super Smash Brothers Melee.**

** Important Note: This story is completely fictional. Please ignore the silliness of it. If you can stand foolishness, then please do continue reading. Thank you very much.**

* * *

**"****Faith is the bird that still feels the light when the dawn is still dark." – Rabindranath Tagore.**

**__****Gardenia**

******By: Babykoalaprincess (BKP)**

******Chapter 1 – New Beginnings**

"So…What did you want to tell me?" a red haired girl asked.

The young woman with red hair, which went down to her waist, was sitting cross-legged on her bed in the late night of Lon Lon Ranch. She faced a blonde figure sitting across from her, as her friend looked her straight in the eye. The faded light, lighten from a small lantern, was the only thing that allowed two Hylian girls to see as their conversation would continue to progress. The two young Hylian teenage girls were having a sleepover at a late summer's day, as they sat on two separate twin beds in Lon Lon Ranch at five past eleven o'clock at night. One of them was a ranch girl that went by the name of Malon; the other was the Princess Zelda of Hyrule. Zelda gave a sigh of fatigue and was almost ready to not say anything. She paused for a moment. The Princess of Hyrule bit the bottom of her lip for a moment, pondering about what she would say next, and how Malon would respond.

"I will be attending a public school this year. My father wishes that I should be no longer tutored by advisors from the castle, and wishes that I should receive education from other people. I am not aware of all the details, which my father wishes from me at this school. However, I felt that I really needed to tell you this… This is a huge step for me. I will be attending a school, where I will actually be learning material with people of my age," Zelda explained.

At the announcement of the Princess' news, Malon's eyes widened a bit, as her eyebrows raised. She was shocked to hear this sort of news from the Princess of Hyrule. Normally, princesses would be never allowed to attend school. They were always locked up in the castle, in their own rooms, with tutors being their only company for the day as they lectured to them about life and life itself. However, leaving the castle walls to educate herself from other people at a place, where other people of her age would also be attending, was a huge step for the Princess in her life. The ranch girl sighed heavily at the news, for she knew that her dear friend would be on a completely different voyage compared to her.

"Well, I do not know what to say, Zelda… I do agree that perhaps this is the best path for you as your way to become the queen of Hyrule, though… I do wish you all the luck for your journey. Remember that I shall always be here to support you with any troubles you have. Know that I shall be always here for you, so no matter how tough everything is going over at that school, I will be here for you. I am glad that you have told me this news," Malon told Zelda.

At the soft, compassionate words from her dear friend, Zelda's face immediately lit up. She was so gratified to have such a supportive friend. She smiled warmly at her friend, for being the person she was as she nodded her head. She didn't know what else to say after this. Her loyal friend had been with her ever since the age of ten. The two could not be separated from each other, despite their different living differences. Zelda had always come to Lon Lon Ranch to visit her dear friend, and liked it. As a matter of fact, she found it more comforting to be in an open, carefree place rather than a grey castle with high walls. Malon felt a little bit useless, not knowing what else to say. Though she tried her best to cheer her friend up.

"I wish you all the luck in the world with this new school. I really hope that you are able to make some friends there," Malon comforted to the Princess. The Princess only sighed heavily.

"I don't know… What if everyone there hates me? What if I do not do well in this new school? I am only worried with everything and everyone that will be surrounding me…" Zelda's voice trailed off. Malon gave her a steady, concerned look as she did not know what to say.

"How could anyone hate you, Zelda? You shouldn't be so self conscious of yourself. Normally, you are never like this… But you shouldn't worry about a thing! It's alright if you are hated by some people, but that's because everyone is not perfect," Malon stated.

Zelda smiled at her friend as she nodded her head in agreement. Though she tried to ignore the last statement for everyone not being perfect, because she wished to believe she could achieve perfection. This was only the beginning, anyways. She would work hard to make sure that she would not fail any classes at school. She smiled at her friend, as she thanked her dearly for being the greatest friend she could ever have in the world. Some of her confidence was restored once again, though only some of it still lingered in her mind as her fear was only temporarily gone. As she left her friend's house late at night, she couldn't help but smile at the world. This was a new chance, and a new path for her journey on the road. This was a new beginning for her.

* * *

The next week on Monday morning, the Princess Zelda was fast asleep in her bed. Her body was lazily laid in her bed, as her hair was spread around her pillow and covers. The curtains of her room where closed shut, as the Princess still snoozed away. She was dreaming. Dreaming of someone. Dreaming of meeting someone. Someone familiar, yet stranger to her at the same time. The figure in her dream was shadowed, as the blinding light shined from behind him. She kept on asking for his name, however, he did not respond. It wasn't long when Impa knocked on the bedroom door a few times, to see if the Princess of Hyrule was awake. Without receiving any sort of response what so ever, she poked her head in the Princess' bedroom door. At the sight of seeing the Princess still sleeping rather deeply in her dreams, she let out a long heavy sigh and simply shook her head at the Princess. The Princess was going to be late on her first day of school if she continued to sleep like this. Impa crept quietly towards the right side of the Princess' king sized bed and told her to get herself out from her bed.

"Zelda... Zelda! Zelda, wake up!" Impa said, as she gently shook the sleeping princess.

"Just five more minutes, Impa," Zelda muttered, as she rolled to her side and pulled her blankets over her head.

"Zelda! You are going to be late if you don't get up now!" Impa warned.

"Just five more minutes!" Zelda said irritated, as she tried to fall back asleep. Impa glared down at the Princess, for a moment and knew that she would have to do better than that, in order to awake the future Queen of Hyrule. The Princess' nursemaid rolled her eyes, took a deep breath, and bellowed.

"ZELDA! GET YOUR BOTTOM OUT OF THAT BED RIGHT NOW!" Impa screamed at the Princess.

Zelda's eyes snapped open at Impa's screaming. Her body sprang up from her comfy, warm feather bed, as she was up. Her eyes had slight dark circle underneath her eyes, though she rubbed them away with the back of her hands. Her eyes lazily glanced at Impa in the eyes, to see her serious face staring at her. Impa definitely had a face filled with disappointment. Still clueless with her surrounds, she quickly ripped off the covers from her lap, and glanced over outside to see the sun shining brightly over the world. Realizing the time, her voice produced a small yelp.

"Crap! I will be late for my first day of school!" Zelda cried out, as her feet touched the wooden floor of her bedroom and she stood up.

"Zelda! Mind your language! You shouldn't be swearing like that. Now, this is your school uniform," Impa said.

Right after she said that, Impa held out a pleated navy blue skirt, a navy blue necktie, a white blouse with a patch of the school's crest on the right side of it, and a navy blue jacket also with the school's crest on the left breast pocket all hanging down from a clothes hanger. Zelda raised an eyebrow at the clothes that stood before her. She had never seen clothes like the ones that Impa was holding up before her. Usually, she was accustomed to the normal elegant silk dresses that she always wore when being tutored. Those clothes were somehow different; they seemed to be more fitting and less feminine. Zelda had heard about this new school was going to be different than most schools. The skirt seemed to be so… short. It was almost as if she was going to be naked and show off a lot of her bare skin, particularly in the bottom half of her body. Her father said there was something called time compression that had to do with it. However, Zelda had no idea what her father was talking about, and her father gave up trying to explaining everything to her, so he just told her to wait and see.

"What? This new school I am going to has school uniforms? Why did my father want me to go a school like that? It's not fun if I can't wear my own clothes!" Zelda cried out angrily with what was happening on her first day of high school.

"Quit complaining and put it on!" Impa ordered, as she dumped the clothes in Zelda's arms.

Zelda gave a sigh as she quickly started undressing from her nightgown and started putting on the school's uniform. Impa had already gone down stairs to get her ride to school ready. When she was finally dressed properly, Zelda examined herself in the full length mirror to make sure that her appearance was fine. She took out her brush and combed through her fair golden hair, quickly, as she brought two long, thick strands at the side of her face. She plaited both of them and pulled them across the side of her head to meet at the back. The Princess reached for a bottle of face cream and plastered it on her face and hands as she dashed down stairs in the castle. She entered the dining hall where her father was seated while reading the newspaper on Hyrule's news. Her father sat there at the head of the dining table with his reading glasses on the bridge of his nose with his auburn hair slightly covering his blue eyes, as he was fully dressed in his normal royal clothes. He didn't look at Zelda as she entered the room, but instead kept on reading the news.

"You are going to be late, Zelda," the king said, without looking up from his newspaper.

"I know," Zelda said, a little bit irritated at everything that was starting out for her day. She quickly grabbed a piece of bread from the table and spread some butter on it. After spreading on the right amount, she stuffed it in her mouth, and started getting her high school uniform jacket on.

"Good bye!" Zelda said with a muffled voice with the bread in her mouth. Zelda quickly sprinted to the main door of the castle while she bit into her piece of toast, to where Impa was waiting for her. Impa watched the Princess, as she hastily put on her brown shoes, as she had her arms crossed and her foot tapping on the ground.

"Quickly, now! Into the carriage! Now!" Impa demanded, after the Princess had adjusted her shoes on her feet, and she hoisted the door open for Zelda.

She quickly grabbed her school bag, as she looked up from her feet to see that the carriage driver was standing at the door of the passenger's door, waiting for her to come forth so he could open the door for her, and four white horses all perfectly lined up, leading the front of the carriage and ready to go. She quickly walked to the carriage door, where the driver finally opened the door for the Princess as Zelda dashed inside the carriage as she finished chewing her breakfast. The Princess of Hyrule plopped down on her seat in the carriage, and sighed. The driver asked her if she was ready to leave, and Zelda replied saying yes. With that being said, the driver of the carriage cracked his whip at the four horses and they were off.

Zelda was tired, sad, and scared for the first day of school. She had no idea where this new school was, what the school's education system was like, and she didn't know anyone from the Super Smash Brothers High School. Zelda thought deeply about the name. Who would name a school like that? According to her father, this school was for top students across the countries that were rich. Meaning that, this school was only for rich snobs, who were attractive, but most of them were jocks, and preps that could care less for education.

"So, Princess, how are you today?" asked the driver, trying to start up a conversation of the Princess of Hyrule.

"Koji, I would appreciate it, if you could stop addressing me like that. I am not fond of being called "Princess". Oh Koji, I am worried about this school. I am going to be late on my first day of school, and it wouldn't be a good impression on my classmates," Zelda said, as she sighed. Her driver chuckled at the young, mature woman.

"Zelda, you don't have to worry about your new school. I am sure it will be fine, and there's nothing to worry about," Koji reassured her as he turned the horses left.

Zelda raised an eyebrow at her driver and sighed again. Despite all the reassuring attempts from her father, Impa, and even Malon, she was still a bit nervous. She was already confused with what was going to happen when she arrived at the school. What was she supposed to do when they arrived? Koji would abandon her for the day, as she would be on her own. She could only hope that she would survive for the rest of the day. Trying to not think about school, she rested her head against the carriage window staring at the trees outside. Though she was nervous, it didn't stop her from wondering what her new school would be like. Without realizing it, the Princess of Hyrule fell asleep during the rest of the ride.

* * *

"Well, here it is... Your new school, Zelda," Koji said, as he stopped the carriage.

Zelda slowly opened up her eyes, and looked over to her right where she saw a large white building in front of her. She slightly dropped her mouth at the huge building. Zelda used to being tutored in the castle. However, her father decided it would be better if she attended the Super Smash Brothers High School. She didn't know exactly why he decided to make this choice, though he said it was because these teachers and school consisted of knowledge "way beyond our time". He told her that she would learn a lot from this experience. Zelda stared deeply at the building, studying it closely. It looked like your typical private school. Zelda sighed as she opened the carriage door. She slowly stepped out of the carriage and waved good-bye to Koji.

"I'll pick you up, right after when school ends!" Koji shouted at the Princess as he drove away.

Zelda watched the old Hylian man disappear down the road, as she sighed again and turned to face the building. Zelda was nervous that she would have to start a new school year like this. There was a slight lurch in her stomach, telling her that she was all tense from her anxiety in her body. She felt her heartbeat beat a little faster than normal with ideas of failure coming into her mind. She had only stepped out of the carriage, yet she felt that she was already confused with everything going around her. She never did want to be separated from her dear friend, Malon. She wondered if Malon would be lonely by herself at the ranch.

Malon and Zelda were best friends ever since they were little. From the first time they met at Hyrule Market, they had an unbreakable bond between them, and they promised each other that they would remain friends until they died. Her friend had always been loyal to her at times when she was depressed or feeling stress out, and she always felt that she could talk to her about anything that was troubling her. It would be very difficult to attend another school, but she would have to take Malon's advice and try her best. Even if things got tough, she could always still go back to Malon at Lon Lon Ranch, and tell her everything that was going on.

She stared up back at the building. It was prodigious. The white school had at least three floors, with square windows covering around the building, and the cement stairway that she was currently standing at the base of, that was leading up to the doorway of her new school. The structure of the building was very unique, compared to most of the buildings back at Hyrule. It looked so... square. Normally most of the buildings that Zelda had seen would have a roof slanting downwards, at both sides. This one, however, didn't, and the roof was flat and went from one side to another. Zelda was carefully studying the building, as some students passed by her, until another student bumped into her. Instead of saying sorry the person responded at her angrily for zoning out.

"Watch it!" the female classmate said to her in a loud, harsh tone. Zelda blinked a few times at the person who was glaring angrily at her for several seconds until she was finally able to produce a sound from her mouth.

"Sorry," she spat out quickly.

The student still kept her eyes angrily locked on Zelda for a few more seconds, until she finally broke her gaze off and turned around to walk up the stairs up to the school. Never, in her life, had Zelda experienced with a person acting so rudely towards her. She was a princess, so it was expected that anyone would treat her with this sort of respect. Her father may have mentioned that in this school, everyone's manners would be different. Her father also mentioned to not expect that everyone to treat her as if she was royalty. Though, this girl seemed to be ruder than a usual girl you would encounter in Hyrule Market. Zelda let out a sigh of relief, knowing that nothing else had happened to her besides that rude encounter with that girl.

"_I guess things are a lot different compared to everything in Hyrule,"_ Zelda concluded to herself, as she proceeded to step up the stairs.

When she finally reached the top she yanked open the silver door handle for her. She looked around the building, amazed, with everything she saw. There was something really different about this school. She couldn't really put her finger on it, but it seemed so modern. There were objects and things in the school she had never seen or heard of. Her father did tell her about that this school had equipment way ahead of her time, but Zelda didn't understand what he meant by that. She obviously felt out of place and didn't feel that the time she was currently living in was right. She still wondered what her father was talking about, but she shrugged it off as she took out a sheet of paper that had her schedule written on it.

"Now let's see… Where is room 182?" Zelda asked to herself, as she looked around at her surroundings.

* * *

"Ah! Another school year with you, eh?" said a voice coming from a blue haired prince.

The Prince had just stretched his arms out in the air after he put his arms down; he nudged his blonde haired friend that was standing right next to him, a few times with his elbow. He grinned at him, and even winked him a few times. The young man was excited and prepared to start the first day of school at the same, old high school he had attended last year. His friend just simply rolled his eyes at the Prince named Marth, and tried to pretend that he was not annoyed by his friend's actions. He was holding off his temper for now. If that blue haired boy was not his friend, the young man would have been sure to retort some nasty comment to him.

"Marth, you knew that I would be attending the same high school as you, so it's not a surprise. Goddesses, why must you always be like that?" the young teenage man said, a little annoyed at his friend always being happy-go-lucky and carefree.

"Ah, come on, Link! You gotta loosen up! No girl is going to fall for you if you are always in that stiff, cold attitude you always put on," Marth said. Link rolled his eyes again at his friend for always telling him to be more cheerful.

The two teenage boys were standing at the left side of a hallway both leaning against a wall. One of them, named Link, had his arms crossed, as he was always frowning at everything he saw. His body was right up and facing at the other side of the hallway, as his right foot was up and pressing against the wall. His ice cold, crystal blue eyes were staring at the ground as his brow was furrowed. Link was known for his cold, serious, pessimistic, and cynical attitude towards everyone he encountered, except his friends, of course. He was a little bit softer on his friends compared to his classmates. Link had sunny blonde, short hair and his bangs were streaming down the front of his eyes. Unlike most students that attended the school, he had pointed ears with piercing of two silver earrings and was considered to be a Hyrulean by all the teachers and the other students. However, that special physical feature somehow made him more popular with the girls than Marth. His neck tie that he wore was loose and he didn't bother fixing it. He wanted it to remain that way. The sleeves of his white shirt were rolled up to his elbows, as the collar of his shirt was up against his neck and a few buttons were unbuttoned down in front of his chest. On his right side, his school bag was just only a few inches away from him and his jacket laid on top of it.

The other boy that went by the name of Marth was completely the opposite of one of his best friends. He was happy, talkative, easy going, optimistic, and somewhat of a playboy. He always seemed to be grinning similar to the Cheshire Cat, and never seemed to be down on the first day of school. Marth had his right elbow touching the wall as the side of face was leaning on his hand. His feet were crossed at the ankles and he stood at Link's left side as he smiled playfully at him. His azure hair was a complete mess on his head, and he liked it that way, because according to one girl, she considered it sexy. His deep violet eyes always had a twinkle in them, always looking out for a young, beautiful girl that he could easily flirt with. His uniform was complete ironed and starched as he also had his tie loose and not fully on. Marth's school bag was also located near him to behind him on his left side. Like Link, he only had a few buttons unbuttoned down his chest. Link slowly took a deep breath as closed his eyes trying to imagine he was somewhere else, rather in the school he was attending to now.

"God! I can't believe those girls over there, are also attending this school too! How the hell, were they able to pass the finals exams from last year?" Marth asked, as he motioned his left, free hand towards a trio of girls that were standing northeast of where Marth and Link stood. Link shrugged his shoulders, as he still ignored Marth. Marth let out a huge sigh as he decided to not disturb his friend any longer.

One of the girls from the trio, that was about five feet and seven inches, smiled at him flirtatiously, and winked at him. Marth was somewhat disgusted by her. It's not that she was very ugly or anything, it was quite the opposite. She was a very pretty young teenage girl that could be a model when she grew up with her long, lanky legs. However, the reason why the Marth was disgusted by her was mostly because she had liked him a lot, and he was just simply not interested in her. She was still smiling at him flirtatiously and Marth felt somewhat pressured by her, so he just gave a small little wave. Marth didn't want to interact with the girl that had a huge infatuation with him, so his eyes wandered around the hallway of the school's building until his eyes focused on a girl striding nonchalantly down the hallway.

This girl had fair blonde hair that fell down past her shoulders, with a few books clasped around in her left arm, pressing against her chest. She looked around as she passed by a few classrooms. Marth closely watched her and observed her physical features. She had a porcelain doll face, with deep sky blue, bright eyes and a nice thin rose pink lips and beautiful ivory skin. Her body was a little willowy as she stood up straight with grace and poise. Another thing that caught Marth's attention was her ears. Her ears were similar to Link's. They were pointed and she was probably a Hyrulean just like his dear friend, and she lived in Hyrule. The uniform that she was required to wear was ironed with her necktie being in the perfect place, as her shirt was straightened down in the front, everything seemed to be in place and Marth could tell right away that this girl was probably a perfectionist. Her backpack was strapped on both sides of her shoulders and wasn't out of place. She was definitely unlike most girls, that would have tried to make their uniform look more appealing to the boys, by lowering their necktie probably a few inches down, and maybe unbuttoning the first few buttons of their white blouses to reveal their chest.

She was very beautiful for a young teenager, and Marth was already deeply interested in her. He could tell that she had already attracted a lot of attention because some boys that she passed were giving wolf whistles. She, however, paid no attention to all the boys that were waving at her, and who were trying to get her to look at them while trying to impress her. She was still focused with finding the classroom for her homeroom.

"Oh… my… GOD," Marth said softly to himself, as he continued to watch the girl stroll pass the classrooms. At the sound of Marth's voice, Link opened his eyes for a moment, and turned his head to face Marth. He had broken his concentration. Marth was going to pay for that one.

"What?" he snapped, irritated, that Marth had interrupted him from his thoughts.

"Get… a load… of… _her_," Marth said, as he motioned his left hand towards the girl walking down the hall. Link tried to ignore his friend, as he kept his eyes focused on the ground because Marth probably was drooling over some average day blonde ditz that cared nothing more about her clothes and her hair.

"Whatever," Link said dully, as he was going to close his eyes once more, until Marth continued to say more.

"Oh, come on! Seriously, you should check this girl out! She's beautiful. Come on, Link, just look!" Marth said to his friend trying to convince his friend to look at the beauty.

"Why?" Link said coldly, as he lifted an eyebrow; he didn't why Marth was always obsessing about attractive, young girls.

"Just look! Come on, you'll thank me later for it," Marth convinced Link.

Marth was not going to let him get away with this one. There was no point in arguing with Marth on the first day of school, and it would only be best to give him what he wanted. Link let out an irritated sigh and his eyes shifted towards where Marth gestured his left hand to. When he saw the girl, he had to admit that she was pretty. With her fine eyes and a body of a dancer, he could see why Marth would easily fall for a girl like her. She did look interesting, and Link wouldn't deny that. She didn't seem to be like most girls in the school, and he decided that he may want to keep an eye on her. However, compared to Marth, he was not impressed with what he saw.

"So what? It's just a new girl," Link replied placidly to his friend. Marth was practically outraged when he heard his friend say that.

"So? She's hot!" Marth exclaimed, as Link rolled his eyes with great annoyance again at Marth's immature, play boyish character.

"Your point is… that she's hot? Who cares? I don't _fucking_ care!" Link snapped, a little bit angry that his friend went through all this trouble just to show him a pretty girl that he was not interested in. "She maybe pretty, but she's not that beautiful."

"Whatever. Think what you want. I think she's gorgeous," Marth told Link.

Right after Marth had finished his sentence, the girl who had winked and smiled at Marth let her right foot slip forward to trip the girl. The blonde girl fell for the trap by just taking a few steps forward, causing her to trip over the other girl's leg. She came tumbling down after tripping over the girl's leg, while her books slipped out of her arms and scattered all over the floor. All of the girls and a few other boys in the hallway sniggered at the golden haired girl for tripping. Even the girl, who tripped her, cackled with delight to see that her plan had worked. After sitting up and rubbing her forehead with her right hand, she started to scoop up all of her textbooks on the hallway floor. Marth, who had also watched what happened to the girl, immediately rushed to her side where he helped her gather her books for her. As he helped her, the girl who had flirtatiously glanced at Marth and tripped the new girl, was now glaring at both of them down on the floor.

"Uh… Thank you," the girl squeaked out nervously, as Marth handed her the textbooks. Marth smiled warmly at the girl who had helped.

"No problem," he said to her. "So, um… What's your name?"

"Ah, it's Princess Zelda Harkinian of Hyrule. I am a new student here," replied the girl with blonde hair. With that being said, Marth's eyes widened a little bit at the girl.

"Really? Well, you certainly are a beautiful princess. No wonder why you look so attractive," Marth flirted, as Zelda blushed. "You know, if you really need a guide around the school, I am always willing to help you. By the way, my name is Prince Marth Lowell of Altea. So anyways, like I said, I can always help you with whatever you need help with. Oh say for example, tutoring, and-"

"Flirting, Lowell?" said a voice from above. The Prince and the Princess eyes both shot up to see who was talking to them.

Their eyes located on a young blonde woman with shimmering green eyes. She was very tall for a freshman in high school, about six feet, and her eyes were glaring down at the blue haired prince that was flirting with Zelda. Her body was big, muscular, and robust, as her chest was rather large for a girl for the age of sixteen. Her uniform was all crumpled at the edges with a few dirt stains on it, her skirt was a little low on her hips, and her necktie was loosened up. The right side of her face was covered with her dusty, desert golden hair that was down in front of her like a mop. Her school bag was slumped on her right shoulder, where it was nearly falling off. The tall girl that stood before them wore mascara and some black eyeliner, with a dark shade of blood red lipstick on her lips. She was also very pretty, however, by the way her uniform was; she looked more of a tom boy rather than a girly girl.

Behind her, another girl stood there, also with blonde hair as she glanced down upon them. Even though she didn't look like it, she was quite, and queer as if she was a mouse. She had stunning ocean blue eyes that had a petrified look in them as if someone was going to march up to her and kill her. The mouse seemed to be frightened at everything in the world, and seemed to look slightly insane and paranoid. Unlike the other girl that had just spoken to both of them, her uniform was neat and tidy. Just by looking at this girl, Zelda could tell that she was obviously very rich. She wore elegant jewelry around her neck and wrists that glowed around her, as if she was a celebrity. Her golden hair illuminated the room with the brightness of her golden hair. With her skin being ghostly pale; Zelda wondered if this princess ate any food since she seemed to be scared at everything. For a moment no one said a word, until Marth finally broke the silence.

"Hey, Aran! I was just trying to help her, ya know?" Marth said slowly, worried about how the former female motorcycle gang member would say next. The tom boy's anger immediately flared up at the moment she heard Marth's reply. She furrowed her brows down at the young teenage boy sitting on the ground and replied angrily to his response.

"That's _bullshit_! I know what you were up to. How dare you try to hurt a poor innocent girl that doesn't know anything about this school! I hate guys like you that are always trying to "help" girls like her when you just really want to get laid with a pretty girl like her!" Samus snarled angrily. She turned her attention to Zelda and spoke to her. Her expression changed instantly, as she had gone from being a vicious female into being a kind, soft hearted woman.

"Here, let me help you up," she said kindly, giving her right hand. "Don't mind that jerk over there. He is one those playboys who always likes to flirt with any girl he sees."

"Hey!" Marth exclaimed at Samus.

"Erm… Thank you," Zelda said, as she took the girl's right hand and pulled herself up from the ground. Zelda brushed off all the dirt from the floor and turned to face the girl named Samus, but the girl was too busy talking with Marth to notice her at the moment. Samus crouched down in front of Marth, where their faces where just inches apart, as she glared heavily at him.

"I'm warning you now. You don't want to mess with me, Lowell. I will seriously take you down, if you mess with innocent girls like that chick over there," Samus said in harsh tone as she pointed to Zelda, who was watching their whole conversation along with everyone in the hallway.

"Er… Why do you think I would try to hit on girls like her?" Marth lied, as he feared about what Samus would say next. She opened her mouth to say something when a new voice interrupted them.

"Because you are always like that, Marth. You always flirt with any pretty looking girl you see, to get what you want," a young teenager flatly said. They both looked up a moment to see another young male teenager with flaming, short red hair, standing behind Marth and Zelda and in front of Samus. He glanced down at the two students with his blue eyes.

"Roy!" Marth shouted angrily at his friend for not defending him. "You are supposed to be helping me out here!"

"Why should he?" interrupted Link, who had also noticed what was going around. He broke his pose from leaning against the wall and walked up to them, as he glared down at Marth for being an idiot. "It's your own fault for whatever you did."

Just when Marth was going to say something more, the first warning bell rang out through the hallways, telling everyone that homeroom was starting soon. They all perked up and Marth quickly jumped to his feet, as Samus properly stood up. Link quickly swiped up his bag from the side of the hallway, as Roy speed walked to the homeroom near the right. Marth also gathered his belongs together, as he began to enter homeroom. As Marth was turning in the other direction to go to his homeroom class, Samus pulled at his left arm for a moment to speak with him.

"I'm watching you," she said in a dangerous tone of voice, as her eyes glowered at the Prince of Altea. Marth stood there a little shocked, knowing that a girl was threatening him rather than a guy stronger than him, but he shrugged it off, as he continued to walk to his homeroom.

After almost everyone abandoned Zelda in the hallway for a moment, she was left with the girl who had just helped her out and her companion. She stared at the girl who was claimed to be called Samus, and studied her a little bit more for a while. Zelda admitted that she never saw any girl in her entire life walk straight up to a man and threaten him. In Hyrule, it was deeply frowned upon since it would be considered unlady like. This girl seemed to be daring, and bold enough to take on any risks in her life, and Zelda could easily see that. Homeroom wasn't going to start for another five minutes, but everyone had left early. The tom boyish girl let out a long, stressful sigh and shook her head as she finally turned to face Zelda.

"Hey, sorry about all that. I forgot to properly introduce myself. My name is Samus. Samus Aran," the tall, blonde haired girl said to her.

"Mine is Princess Zelda Harkinian," she said, as she lifted her right hand for Samus to shake. They shook their hands a few times when they finally let go. "Thank you for helping me out earlier, Aran."

"Oh, it's nothing! Hey! You don't have to call me that, you know... I prefer it if you called me "Samus". We're friends, okay?" She said, as she winked at her.

Zelda's face was masked with shock, for she did not know what to say. She never thought she'd make friends that quickly with another student, but she decided that Samus was nice enough to be her friend, anyways. Zelda turned to the other girl as she introduced herself.

"So, erm… Nice to meet you. My name is Zelda Harkinian," Zelda said, as she held out her hand again for the girl standing beside Samus.

The girl didn't respond in anyway, as she blinked at the girl a few times. She still looked frightened at Zelda either way, and refused to speak or show any signs of emotions. Her facial expression remained the same through out the conversation with the Princess of Hyrule and Marth, and during Samus' little warning towards the Prince of Altea. The other blonde haired girl was finally able to slowly lift up a shaking hand and wrapped in against Zelda's, as she shook it once. She was barely able to produce a sound from her lips.

"Peach," she whispered so softly that Zelda could barely hear it.

"So, do you need help with anything?" asked Samus.

"Er… Yes… I am having trouble locating room 182," Zelda said to the girl, as she held up her schedule to Samus.

"Ah, 182? That's to your right!" Samus said quickly, as she pointed to the classroom that was right next to Zelda. "So you have Mr. Jones as your homeroom teacher, as well? That's great! Peach and I both have him as our homeroom teacher too! Except, we are probably stuck with that jerk, Marth, in that class as well."

"Oh, well. I am sure he's not that bad…" Zelda began to say, as Samus gave her a horrified look.

"Believe me, he's the worst. What makes him even worse, is the fact that he's popular, and that every girl would die to have either him or one of his two other friends as their boyfriend," Samus said coldly.

"Anyways, you're better off having someone like me guide you around rather than a guy. I mean, like, you never know what they can do to you when you are alone…," Samus said, as her voice trailed off and her eyes slowly shifted towards the ground. Zelda blinked at her a few times in confusion.

"Erm, right?" Zelda said a little awkwardly at the tom boy. The Princess was completely clueless with what the bounty hunter was saying. In fact, the Princess was clueless with everything around her. The bounty hunter's face lifted up to look at Zelda and her mood completely changed from being somewhat sad to being normal and cheery.

"But anyways, let me help you around the school. However, I think its best that we go into homeroom now," Samus quickly said as she motioned her head towards the room to their right. Zelda nodded her head as she, Samus, and the girl named Peach, walked into their homeroom class.

* * *

If there was any way to describe Zelda's homeroom teacher in just one word, it would be: crazy. Mr. Jones was one of your over enthusiastic men with white hair, even though he was very young and that reminded you a lot of Jay Leno. He was very tall, and was married to probably some nice young woman, who he always was able to produce a smile for her. The teacher was loved by all of his students, mostly because of his humor and the feeling that students could always joke around with him whenever they were around, as he would make fun of them, using appropriate jokes. There was never a moment that you could sense him angry and you wouldn't think that no student alive ever saw him angry, sad, depressed, or any negative emotions. He would always be filled with life, and energy, and that's what made him likeable as a teacher.

However, for Princess Zelda of Hyrule, she was practically scared by the man because in her kingdom, men would never be so full of life and always seemed to remain dull as a kitchen knife with long droning conversations. From the moment Zelda saw her future homeroom teacher, she thought he was weird by the unnatural color of his hair, and the fact that he always seemed to be so laid back. She personally preferred serious teachers that knew how to take care of things instantly, compared to a male teacher who seemed to dilly dally with some subjects and works he had to do.

"Alright, kids! Welcome to the Super Smash Brothers High School! I will be your homeroom teacher for the whole year, so you better get used to having me around. So now, I am going to assign you your daily homeroom seats. I will be making a map here on the board right now, so for now, you can just talk to people," Mr. Jones said in his usual enthusiastic voice. He turned his back on the class as he took out a black marker and began to draw the seating arrangements on a white board, while people turned to face their friends and chatted lively. Zelda faced Samus and Peach to see what they were going to say now.

"Okay. So, erm. Since I met you and all, you wouldn't mind me checking out your schedule to see if we have any classes together? I have Gym, Biology, and Study with Peach, but nothing else. God, did the guidance councilors from this school somehow knew that I was friends with Peach from last year, and wanted me to separate her? What the hell is this? Hmph! To think, Ms. Rosedale could tell me that I should take crap from those three bitches that were tormenting Pea-" Samus said, when Peach quickly darted her eyes off the ground to Samus' face and clamped her right hand over Samus' mouth before Samus could say anything more.

"Samus… Please… Don't…," Peach whispered in a terrified voice in Samus' ear, even though Zelda could hear what she was saying.

As Peach unclasped her hand from Samus' lips, Samus faced at her friend for a moment. She noticed the look in Peach's pleading eyes telling her to not tell her about what happened last year. That same petrified, scared look after Samus had encountered Peach. Samus knew Peach for over a year, and she knew that her friend would never in a million years want to tell a new, exchange student about something that she had suffered. Even though Samus was not aware with whatever had happened to Peach over a year ago, she could tell that she had definitely changed from the last past years. Samus' expression changed from being somewhat annoyed, and her rambling about any complaints about the new school she could think of, into becoming softer, and warm. Samus nodded her head to show that she would carry on Peach's wish.

"Alright. Never mind about that, Zelda. Anyways, like I said. Could I see your schedule?" Samus asked, as Peach sighed in relief. Zelda blinked a few times as she opened her back pack. She slowly produced the same schedule; she had when looking for her homeroom classroom. She extended her paper out towards the tom boy with desert golden hair, as she rested her elbow at the top of her chair. Peach peered over from behind Samus' left shoulder to read the paper as well.

"Hm…," she said with her head tilted to the left, as her hair covered her right eye. "So, you have Biology with me, eh? Well, that's good. Oh yes! Also Geometry, eh? Great! I could really use a buddy in that class, even though I get perfect grades in math. Whoa! Are taking French… and Spanish? Well, I know that you will have Spanish with me, but you will have French with Peach. By the way, why are you taking two languages?" Samus asked, as she looked up at Zelda. Zelda shrugged her shoulders, as she faced her two classmates.

"I don't know. My father did that against my will. Since I'm a princess of a country, I should be fluent in few languages in case if I need to make any negotiations with any foreign countries. It was requested by my father that I know a few languages so the language barrier between another ruler and I, won't be so… complex for communication," Zelda finished, as Samus raised both of her eyebrows and gave a low whistle from her lips, as Peach stared blankly at her for a few seconds.

"Wow. You are going to have a lot to study then. I know Peach here, is a princess as well, but she doesn't have to study both French and Spanish. I bet you haven't heard of the Mushroom Kingdom, have you? Well, that's where Peach is the ruler of," said Samus.

Though, Zelda was not listening to a word that Samus said. Zelda only watched Peach for a minute, despite the fact that she seemed to refuse to interact with the conversation that Samus and her were having. She observed the other princess' face, as the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom did not reply or look into Zelda's eyes at all. She kept her eyes focused at her hands that were folded in her lap, and when she did finally look up at Zelda, she did not make any communications with her what so ever. After a while, Samus noticed at what Zelda was observing, and decided to answer the question that Zelda had.

"She's not going to speak, you know. She rarely does. I know it's a harsh thing for me to say, being her friend and all, but it's true," she said somewhat flatly, as she shrugged.

"Erm… Right…" Zelda said hesitantly, as she still watched the other princess.

Shortly after the Princess of Hyrule said those words, the bell rang. The students of the Super Smash Brothers High School immediately stood up from their chairs as they quickly exited the classroom for the day. They were all packed together tightly as they made their way to the exit of the room. As if they were a bunch of grapes, they all shoved and pushed each other as they were all finally able to move on the next class on their schedules. Only Samus and that girl, Peach, were the only ones left in the classroom. They were both watching their other classmates abandon the room until they both finally faced Zelda. As Zelda stood up as well, to exit the room she immediately tripped over the leg of a chair, which someone didn't push in to the table, and fell down. At the sight of the Clumsy Princess, Samus sighed heavily.

"My God, you are a bit of a klutz…"

After helping Zelda up, the Princess turned to her and smiled meekly at her mistake. She brushed the dirt off her school uniform, as she faced her new friends. It wasn't until a few seconds later, when Samus faced her and smirked at her.

"So anyways… What now? Oh yeah! Introductions! Welcome to the Super Smash Brothers High School, aka your new version of Hell!"

* * *

_A/N: Thank you for reading. Reviews and any sort of criticism what so ever are highly appreciated._

_Love,_

_-BKP_


	2. Gym Class, Explanations, and SOCCER!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Super Smash Brothers Melee.**

* * *

"**Whatever the place allotted us by providence that is for us the post of honor and duty. God estimates us not by the position we are in, but by the way in which we fill it." – Tyron Edwards.**

**Chapter 2 – Gym Class, Explanations, and SOCCER?!**

The Princess of Hyrule only looked around in the outside fields, as she quickly yet quietly made her way over the metal benches. She was late. In fact, she had been late for fifteen minutes already due to her getting lost around the school. The Super Smash Brothers High School was so enormous, that Zelda found it impossible for her to remember where her classes were located all at once. She was also taking her time to find her gym locker in the changing room, as she had to dress in her gym clothes for the class. Everyone in her gym class was already outside, all fully dressed in the traditional navy blue shorts and white T-shirts. All of the males in her class were already preoccupied with playing soccer out on the field, while the females were sitting on the benches watching the boys play. Zelda quickly saw her friends, Samus and Peach, as she quickly dashed over to them. Hopefully, the gym teacher wouldn't notice she was late. Samus was the first one to notice her entrance for gym class, as she turned her head and smiled at her.

"Late?" she asked Zelda.

"Yes. Goodness, how do you people survive with running around the school like this?" Zelda questioned, as she took a seat next to Samus. Samus simply shrugged her shoulders.

"We just do. It's not a question of whether it's possible or not, we just do it."

"Anyways, does the teacher know that I was late for class?"

"You mean, Mr. Jackson? Hell no. He's too busy with watching over the boys on the soccer field to not notice. So you're saved. He rarely does check attendance, and when he does, it's only when the principle, vice principle, and the superintendent of the school come around to check on the teachers and their students," Samus stated, as Zelda raised an eyebrow.

"Is that so?" she asked with curiosity.

"Yeah."

"Huh…" Zelda said to herself, as she watched the boys play soccer.

There was nothing to be expected out of the gym class. In fact, most of the students would be better off ditching the class; however, due to the fact of skipping class would be short lived with the teachers roaming around on their free period, it was impossible to successfully skip the class. The girls in the entire class were all just sitting on the metal benches of the fields as they watched the boys in the class. Most of them, were watching a handsome trio playing forward on the white team with stars in their eyes. Zelda closely observed the entire scene, as she was amazed to see the trio with their quick speed and powerful kicks in the goals. Mr. Jackson couldn't help but smile at the trio. He had specifically taken his gym period to test out all of the males' strength for soccer, so he could decide who could become the star soccer players of the school. Considering the fact that Mr. Jackson was a slight sexist, he didn't bother seeing the girls play soccer, since he considered them to be weak.

Out on the field, Roy was running at full speed, as he quickly dodged one player on the yellow team. He tricked the player thinking, that he was going to his left, but he quickly went to his right. Left. Right. Left. Right. Left, left, and then right. Now the defender of the team was confused. Taking this opportunity, his blue eyes rapidly shot up to see if any of his team mates where open. As expected, he noticed that Marth was wide open and shouting his name. With a smirk on his face, he put his whole force on the black and white ball and shot it in the direction his blue haired friend was standing. Marth was able to quickly retrieve the ball from his friend, as he dribbled the ball in the direction of his goal. The goalkeeper was already a little bit worried with what the Prince's plan was. Marth studied the goalkeeper of the yellow team, carefully, as he was able to find an opening at the top left of the goal. He made a power shot toward that direction. As the goalkeeper lunged for the ball, Marth smiled at the ball piercing in the net of the goal.

At the sight of the Prince of Altea scoring a goal, the white team immediately went up into a loud cheer. Even most of the girls on the benches were already screaming Marth's and Roy's name. They all had dreamy looks upon their faces as they were all screaming in happiness that the school's favorite students were incredible with sports as well. Roy immediately rushed over the Marth, as he congratulated Marth with his victory.

"Nice goal, Marth! Nothing less from one of my best friends!" Roy exclaimed as he high fived Marth.

"Heh. Yeah, well, that's all due to that awesome pass you gave me!" Marth said back as he grinned. The two swordsmen finally turned to their right, to face their other friend. The other swordsman was already watching them with narrow eyes on his face.

"By the way… Link, where were you when we needed you?" Marth asked, as Link shot him a glare.

"Well, what do you expect? That stupid defender,what's his name… Connor was already keeping me busy. You have to realize that I am not free all the time with some defender like that," Link spat out coldly at Marth.

"Hey… Don't get all upset on me now, Link! I was just wondering, alright?" Marth stated as he tried to calm down the other swordsman. If there was anything that Marth feared, it was the temper of either his Hylian friend or Samus'. Link shifted his eyes to the ground, as he crossed his arms.

"Whatever," he said. He icily walked away from his two friends, to retreat back to the middle of the field, where a new game would start. A sweat drop fell from Marth's head, as he faced Roy.

"Gosh, that guy is so uptight at times… He scares me, Roy."

Roy shrugged his shoulders as he also started heading back to the center of the field.

"Well, just be careful around him. You know how Link is. I am surprised that Link didn't say anything else to you," Roy said. Marth, who still had a sweat drop on the side of his face, slowly made his way to the center of the field as well.

Samus Aran gulped down her soda, as Zelda watched her with somewhat confusion and worry. The Princess was already lost with what was happening, and she was even more worried that the teacher might catch Samus drinking her soda. The Princess of Hyrule to Peach to see what her reaction was, however, the other princess was just staring at her hand, fiddling with her thumbs. During Marth's goal, Samus got irritated at the feeling of boredom, so she reached into her backpack on the end of the benches and took out a can of cola. She immediately opened the aluminum can, and started to drink it. After finishing the last drop of cola, Samus slowly studied the field, as she let out a sigh and a complain.

"Argh! Why must I be sitting here and do nothing? Why can't I play soccer as well? Why must Mr. Jackson be such a sexist AND an asshole and refuse to let any girls play? This is so boring…" Samus ranted, as she furrowed her eyebrows at the boys on the field. Zelda already had a sweat drop in her head, as she tried to smile at the bounty hunter.

"Eh heh… If you don't mind, would you please do me the favor of explaining some material to me? For example, what was that liquid you were drinking? What is that game they are playing?" Zelda asked politely.

Samus' eyes immediately shifted towards Zelda. She sighed, but she figured that this was the only way to save her from boredom. It was going to be tough to teach a newbie about a lot of things during the current time period, but it couldn't be helped. Samus had to save a poor, innocent naïve girl like Zelda from evil people. Evil people like that stupid jock, Marth, the skanks, and hoes. Not the mention the druggies and the all familiar scary Goth kids as well.

"Alright, listen up. That liquid I was drinking was called soda. You got that? So what soda is…" Samus began to explain. After five minutes of explaining and becoming frustrated at Zelda with her unknown knowledge of the present time, she was successfully able to explain what soda and soccer is.

"So that's it?" Zelda asked.

"That's it," Samus said plainly. She opened her back pack again, as she pulled out a bag of potato chips. Before Zelda could ask, Samus quickly gave a brief, yet quick explanation of that "thing" she was holding in her hands and what potato chips were.

"So, what now? Do you mind introducing me to some of the students?" Zelda requested.

"Hmm?" Samus asked, with a potato chip stuck in her mouth. At the hearing of those words, Samus smirked in her mind. This was a perfect opportunity to explain to her about some things to be careful about.

"Yeah, sure. Okay, you see that girl over there? Her name is Megan Anderson. That was the little bitch that tripped you today before homeroom started. Be careful of her, she's the most evil and bitchiest girl you will ever meet in your life. She's one of those stupid, superficial skanks who thinks money, clothes, and make up is everything in life. If she approaches you, don't fall for her "innocent, kind" little trap. She can send a rumor about anyone in less than a second. She's a true bitch inside, and don't let her get to you. If you saw what she did to Peach last year, you would understand what I mean… I would love to explain it to you now, but I can sense there was something going on with her and Peach in the past. And because of her, look at Peach now! She's so innocent, yet she refuses to talk to me or anyone! Anyways, another reason why you should be careful of her is because she is the president of the MRL Fan Club."

"The MRL Fan Club? What is that?" Zelda immediately questioned with curiosity.

"The MRL Fan Club stands for the Marth, Roy, and Link Fan Club. Meaning, that more than half of the female population of the school worships those stupid three jocks over there on the field," Samus stated, as she shot her finger towards where Marth, Roy, and Link were playing soccer. Link had just finished passing the ball over to Marth, whom later passed it to Roy, and then back to Link again.

"She's obsessed with Lowell. Those two girls over there around her are Rachael Livingston and Caitlin Russell. Livingston is obsessed with Roy, while Russell is obsessed with Link. Last year, they all had a separate fan club for each of the boys. It wasn't the middle of last year, when they decided it would be better to form all three clubs into one, since those three guys are best friends and such. Oh yeah, Anderson, Livingston, and Russell are all best friends with each other. So be aware of all three of them. Just because one of them acts all nice and friendly towards you, doesn't mean that all of them are not watching you," Samus finally finished.

Zelda raised her eyebrows at Samus, as the bounty hunter had her attention focused on the three swordsmen on the fields. Link kicked the ball towards Roy, as Roy made a shot in the goal. The bounty hunter frowned at the sight of the three men, as if she had a grudge against them. As Zelda noticed Samus' glaring at the three swordsmen, she looked over to the left, to view the girls that Samus was talking about. All three of them were all busy observing their looks with small, compact hand held mirrors in their hands. Megan was busy looking down at her manicured nails, to make sure they were perfect. While Rachael was blowing a bubble with her gum in her mouth, as she twisted her hair in her left hand. Zelda finally looked at Caitlin, whom was busy putting on mascara on her eyelashes.

Zelda first observed Megan, the leader of the group. She had a nice, healthy brown hair with a few golden highlights in her hair. Zelda tried to closely examine Megan, but she couldn't make up her mind if this Megan girl had some kind of Hispanic heritage to her blood, and what other ethnicities she had. It was hard to determine what this girl was, but by the looks of it, Megan didn't seem to care. For she was too busy looking at her looks. She was the tallest, yet the most dominant of them all. She was pretty, and she knew it all too well, to seduce young men with her looks. With only a toss of her brown golden highlighted hair, men could stop at their feet and gape at her. Zelda tried to continue studying her face, hoping that Megan would not notice. Her eyes contained too much eyeliner and mascara around them, as for her nose was long and slender while her mouth was a perfect shape for any boy to make out with. Megan Anderson's body was slim, with her legs tall like steel polls, and her long, lanky arms hanging down her sides. She was small breasted; however, it didn't stop her face from looking pretty.

Zelda's eyes stopped focusing on Megan, after the girl looked up from her nails and up to where Zelda was sitting. When she shifted her attention at Rachael, she noticed that Megan and she were finally interacting with each other. As for Megan was tall and slim, Rachael was somewhat of the opposite. Rachael was shorter than Megan, with a bit of fat hanging at her hips. Though she was perhaps a tad bit chubby, all of this extra fat she had, created a very curvy, voluptuous figure for the girl. These curves were designed for any boy who enjoyed seeing woman with large bottoms and big breasts. When looking at her face, Rachael had the typical face any blonde would have. It was filled with sneer and snootiness, with her watery blue eyes and luscious pink lips. Just like Megan, Rachael was well aware of her looks as well.

As for the last girl, Caitlin, she was the shortest of the group. Her petite figure was definitely like any of the two girls. While Rachael had a medium height and curvy figures, and Megan was slim and tall, Caitlin was just short and skinny. Caitlin had curly, blonde locks hanging down from the top of her head, all the way down to her shoulders, as her eyes were also blue like Rachael's. Her skin was a little bit lighter than Rachael's and Megan's, but she also wore too much eyeliner and mascara around her eyes. In fact, she wore too much unnecessary make up. She was a failure at trying to make herself look beautiful. In reality, the leaders of the MRL Fan Club were all failures at trying to make themselves look beautiful. If they wished to be beautiful, they would have to learn that not all beauty comes from makeup, jewelry, and clothes.

When Zelda finally glanced back as Samus, the bounty hunter gave her a smug look on her face to show that she had proven her point about all three of the girls. Those three girls were truly the nastiest beings in the world for being the way they were. Thinking so highly of themselves was such a sin for any girl in the Super Smash Brothers High School to do. Though they were disgusting, Zelda found it surprising to learn, just by the people around them, that most of the females wished to be like them. The three were the most popular girls in the entire school.

"See what I mean? Those girls are disgusting. They are wannabe celebrities, who are also makeup monsters in disguise!"

"Erm, if you don't mind… Would you mind telling me about those three boys on the fields, that you were talking about earlier?" Zelda asked, as she shifted her right hand towards the direction of the handsome swordsmen on the fields.

"Oh you mean, Lowell, Flores, and Wright? Yeah, sure thing! Anyways. That creep over there with the blue hair. His name is Marth Lowell. You met him earlier today, right? Be aware he's a ladies man, so he'll try to get any girl he wants. He's the student president of our school. Besides of his good looks, you wanna know why girls are crazy about him? Look at his athletic abilities! You see how fast he runs? Any girl in our school just _dies_ for a guy who is athletic and skilled with a sword. Not to mention, he's smart too. He gets A's in about every class. And he's a prince from this country called Altea. But who could care less about those things? Erm… what else? He is the captain of the boy's soccer team, the fencing team, and the track team. He's an idiot, and that's about it. That red haired guy, standing near that freak right there, is named Roy Flores. He is from the same city Lowell is from. They seem to be pretty close, since they are from the same city and stuff. I don't know what to say about him, but he's pretty serious about a lot of stuff. He's also smart and athletic like Lowell, but I say he's brainier and not that athletic compared to Lowell. He is the student vice president of the school. And you see that guy, over there next to the two of them, glaring at Lowell? His name is Link Wright. I don't know where he's from, but I think it's a place called Hyrule?" Samus said, as Zelda's eyes stared at Samus.

"Hyrule! Why, that's where I live!" Zelda immediately exclaimed before Samus could say anything else. Samus only stared at her back as she looked at her in disbelief.

"No way! Is that true? Oh yeah… Why didn't I realize it earlier? You have the same ears as Wright… But before I continue, I gotta question for you… Are your people always so rude? Or is that just Wright?" Samus immediately asked.

"Erm… No. What do you exactly mean by that? Of course our people are not so rude. In fact, I try to be as polite as possible to anyone I meet. Unless they are rude to me, then of course I won't be so pleasant to them," Zelda replied.

"Oh, okay. Well, just to let you know… Link Wright is… well, how do I put this? Erm… Really cold. He's so icy. I mean, just look at him now! The way he's frowning and glaring at everyone, really puts him off. It's as if he's better than everyone else. I can hardly believe that he's even friends with Lowell and Flores. I don't really know that much about him only the fact that's he's treasurer of the student council, but he's just… the way he is," Samus finally finished.

"Then why are so many girls after him?" Zelda wondered out loud.

"Because! Look at him! See how handsome he is? A lot of girls just DIE at the sight of Wright's eyes! They literally faint. However, since he's so prickly, it's something that makes him hard for any girl to get him. Perhaps the fact that Wright is someone who not most girls can have, creates more competition amongst the girls? I seriously have no idea…. And why is Mr. Jackson an asshole? I wanna play soccer too!" Samus exclaimed.

Out of sheer luck on the soccer field, it wasn't until one of the defenders on the yellow team, Fox McCloud, tackled one of the four forwards. Even though Fox didn't mean to critically hurt one of the forwards on the white team, he somehow did. Something in his tackle had him have more force when tackling the player than he thought. The forward let out a piercing cry out on the field, as all the female gym students watched the field in horror. The injury was so urgent that the forward had to be sent to the nurse's office. After about a million apologies from Fox McCloud, the teacher had finally approached the metal benches for the first time in his life. He produced a long, irritated sigh that he would have to ask a _girl_ to play on a _boy's_ soccer game.

"Does any girl here wish to play soccer? We need another player to play forward on the white team…" Mr. Jackson said in his monotone voice.

At the sound of playing on the same team as Link, Marth, and Roy, almost all of the girls' faces lit up. However, due to the fact they all lacked athletic abilities, they all pondered whether or not they should do it. They were all afraid of messing up somehow for the three swordsmen. They also were concerned with whether or not their hair would still look fabulous while running. Not to mention, they hoped not to get sweaty, so they wouldn't feel the stickiness of their clothes being glued to them. Only Samus Aran smirked at the idea of playing the boy's soccer team.

"I'll do it!" Samus exclaimed with confidence.

All of the girls on the metal benches only faced her with amazement. Particularly Zelda and Peach, since both of them were bewildered that Samus would be so willing to play soccer. On the fields with the boys, soccer looked more as if it was a fight against nine men on each team. Mr. Jackson only raised an eyebrow, as he was not impressed with the idea of Samus replacing one of the players on the white team. He immediately regretted the decision of the idea of Samus playing the boy's team, but he decided it would be best to let her give it a shot. He only sighed as if it was the most troublesome thing to do. As Samus stood up from the metal benches on the sides of the field, Zelda quickly pulled at her left arm.

"Are you sure that's alright with you? I mean, you just ate some food and drank some liquids… Do you really think it's going to be okay out there? I mean… Soccer looks very aggressive out there…" Zelda began to say, as her voice trailed off. Samus only gave her a grin filled with confidence in herself.

"Don't worry about it! I know that my soccer skills are about equal compared to the boy's. They will have to get serious with me, once I am on the field!" Samus cries out with brimming confidence, it makes Zelda produce a sweat drop on the side of her head.

"Erm… Alright… Good luck, Samus!" Zelda says to her.

"Yep! Thanks! Aren't you going to say anything, Peach? Come on! Say something at least once in a while! I have to know that you are not a mute or something!" Samus says.

Peach only glances up for her for a few seconds, as her eyes slowly wander back down to her lap. She looks depressed, is the first thing that Zelda notices. Peach always looks depressed. She is a living portrait of the remains of what should be happiness. Peach refuses to talk to anyone, yet no one knows why. Only those faithful to her, like Samus, would be able to protect Peach from true harm. At the sight of Peach not responding to what Samus is saying, the bounty hunter only sighs heavily.

"Alright, fine. Be that way. Just be sure to cheer my name from the benches, m'kay?"

Samus quickly runs up to the center of the field, where most the boys are waiting for the replacement. Mr. Jackson is already watching Samus with somewhat annoyance and aggravation. As Samus marches down the center of the field, all the boys gape at her for her volunteering to play soccer. They actually never expected a substitute for the forward. All of the boys on the field stared at Samus with a bewildered look upon their faces, except for Link who was cold as he always was. Samus was still grinning with confidence as she finally made her way up to the center of the field.

"Hey, what are you doing here on the field? You are supposed to be on the benches fixing your hair or something," Marth commented, as Samus immediately shot a death glare at him.

"_And this is why I hate Lowell… He always fucking aggravates me with his stupid comments…"_ Samus thought to herself, as she still glared at him.

She kept on glaring at him for a couple of more seconds. Everyone on the field dared not to make a move, for they all feared what the bounty hunter would do next. All that could be heard at the moment was the wind howling softly, that breezed on their faces in the summer morning. It wasn't long until Marth finally produced a sweat drop out of the side of his head. He tried to remain the usual state he was always in, but he couldn't help it now, that Samus' eyes were piercing through him. There was definitely something wrong. Despite the fact that Marth was an ultimate chick magnet when it came with women, it didn't stop him from being clueless about a few things. He finally crept over to Roy's side, as he leaned in his ear to ask him something.

"What's with her and glaring at me, huh?"

"Isn't it obvious? You pissed her off…" Roy whispered back.

"I did?" Marth immediately asked, as he looked up at Samus.

She was still glaring at him. Marth raised his eyebrows at her, as he produced yet ANOHER sweat drop from his head. After a few moments of being completely nervous about Samus and her temper, he tried to move on with the day. He lifted up both of his hands and flapped them down to the ground, as he tried to mollify the bounty hunter's anger.

"Eh… Hey now… Let's not get angry about this thing now… Let's just play soccer, okay?" Marth stated.

At the sounds of the words, Samus started to walk a little bit down the field as she reached a position where she wanted to be for soccer. As she passed by Marth, she sent him another glare. Marth cringed a bit as he saw her glaring at her for a moment again. As Samus stopped glaring at Marth and took her place on the field, Marth quickly leaned over with Link and Roy as he whispered his plan. They were currently tied. They were in a draw with the yellow team. If there was anything that Marth hated it was to lose a game. That meant anything. He had to admit, that his opponents were pretty good, but they could never in a million years, match up to his speed. None of them could match up to the iron triangle, which consisted of him, Roy, and Link. He knew though, that they would not be defeated even with a girl on their team. The Prince of Altea's eyes shifted towards the bounty hunter at her position, he was positive that she would not interfere with the game.

"Alright. So, I'm going to pass the ball to Link. Link, once Roy is open, go ahead and pass it to him. Roy, once you have the ball, pass it back to me, so I can score it… Alright? Are we all good?"

"And what about _me_?" A threatening voice asked.

At the sound of that voice, the threesome immediately looked over to where Samus was supposed to be standing. However, it turns out that she abandoned her position on the field, and snuck up behind them to hear the details of their plan. She was glaring at all three of them for being the selfish brats they were, as she was still infuriated that they decided to leave her out with everything. Marth and Roy immediately produced a sweat drop out of the side of their heads, as Link remained calm and didn't say anything. Marth's sweat drop immediately disappeared as he finally thought of something to say to the bounty hunter.

"Erm… Just… Try to stay out of everyone's way," Marth instructed to Samus.

Samus Aran was definitely not satisfied to hear those words out of Marth's mouth, as she narrowed her eyes towards him in anger. As Marth tried to not produce as many sweat drops as possible for this chapter of his high school life, he brushed it off. He strode over to the center of the circle in the field with the black and white hexagon ball in front of him. As Roy and Link got into place, his eyes shifted from Link on his left to Roy on his right. He noticed Samus being on the far right next to Roy, with her emerald eyes still glaring at him. Marth smirked as he tapped the ball to his right to Roy.

And so it began. The game was starting. Though, before Roy was going to run up front and dribble the ball, a flash of a person appeared in front of him. Roy blinked a few times in confusion, as he looked down at where the ball should be at his feet, but he realized it was gone. The person who could steal the ball from him happened so fast, that he didn't realize it. It was impossible though. No one on the yellow boy's team could steal ball from him. They were all too slow and less powerful compared to Marth, Link, or him. He immediately looked at his left side to see if perhaps he just paused for a moment and forgot where he was, though Marth was still standing next to him. He also had a look of confusion on his face with his eyebrows knitted in his brow. As he looked farther down to his left, to see Link's face, he saw that the Hylian still had his cold and collected face on. When the two swordsmen of Altea finally looked down the field, they saw a girl with blonde hair running up to the goal, dribbling the ball with her feet at high speed.

As the two stared at the person dribbling the ball, their jaws dropped. It had been Samus that had stolen the ball from Roy. As Roy continued to stare in amazement, Marth was the only one to react to his surroundings. The Prince of Altea started to dash up front to catch up with bounty hunter. She was already half way down the yellow team's half of the field when he finally came in contact with her.

"Hey! What the hell do you think you are doing!" Marth yelled at her.

This was just perfect for Marth. He had a full proof plan that would have carried him to oh-so-glorious-victory all the way to the end! However, a simple a bounty hunter had gone and stolen the ball from one of his comrades! Perhaps this ordinary bounty hunter should not be underestimated after all… Or perhaps this ordinary bounty hunter was not so simple after all… Although, Marth screamed in a very girly way to Samus, Samus could only shout back to him in such anger.

"What does it _look_ like I am doing? I am stealing the ball away from you creeps, so we can freakin' WIN!" Samus screamed back at him.

"Gargh! Well, you stealing the ball from us, doesn't help with anything!" Marth yelled, as he finally came next to her left.

He tried stealing the ball back from her, but she wasn't going to let him. He gritted his teeth, as he kept on trying to take the ball. However, Samus wasn't an easy opponent to steal the ball from. All the other people on the yellow team were trying to tackle Samus Aran all at once, but it didn't seem to work. The bounty hunter was still charging full speed ahead towards the soccer goal. The Prince kept on trying to use various tactics on the bounty hunter, but she seemed to dodge out on all of them. Everyone on the team was already amazed at Samus' athletic skills, especially Mr. Jackson. The Prince of Altea kept on glaring at Samus for being uncooperative with his plan, as he kept on trying to steal it from Samus.

"There are only TWO things I hate in this world, Lowell…" Samus began to say, as she dodged Marth's tackle.

"It's losing… AND… JERKS… LIKE… YOU!" Samus finally screeched, as she sent a full blow shot at the goal.

There was a moment of silence between the both of them and on both teams. Even all the girls on the benches hushed their gossiping for a moment as they watched the next scene. They all were anxious to see whether or not the ball with black and white hexagons would actually make it into the goal. Everyone in the gym class observed with steady eyes, as they all wondered that question in their head. For Samus, she silently begged for the ball to score in the goal. In her head, the ball was in slow motion, as it was still soaring in the air to reach its destination. The ball was still soaring up, as it was gradually falling down towards the goal. Slowly… the goalkeeper on the yellow team lunged for it with his hands up to reach for it. Samus still watched the ball, as she prayed for it to go in. It was still sinking down towards the net… and SCORE! The goal keeper had missed the ball as it punched into the net.

At the sight of the ball scoring in the net, Samus had a boastful smile upon her face. She was able to prove what she was now. She was no longer a girl whom everyone thought was only there on the team to look pretty and just do nothing. She could now be treated as an equal player on the team. As Marth looked Samus' face after her goal, she smugly smirked at him.

He felt as if a small flame had sparked inside him. He was boiling with fury. He felt as if the fires of Hell, itself had become a part of him. His eyebrows were deeply scrounged in his forehead. He was still glaring at Samus with such rage, as she could only wily smile at him. At the sight of her smile at him, it only irritated Marth even more. He let out a small frustrated yell, as he retook his position in the center field circle. However, just before another round of soccer could begin, Mr. Jackson, himself, had strode over there to discuss something with the students. He sternly looked at Samus, as he began to say something.

"Aran… I am just wondering… but you have to reconsider about your skills for soccer," Mr. Jackson began to say.

At those sounds of those words, Marth's heart immediately rose for a moment. By the looks of it, Mr. Jackson was going to scold Samus for showing off her skills at soccer. Marth began to feel confident about himself once again, considering the fact that Mr. Jackson _was_ a sexist. So far, Samus was only disappointed to hear that from Mr. Jackson. She had her eyebrows deeply furrowed in her brow. Perhaps she should have known. She had always loathed that Mr. Jackson always discriminated men and women. He wasn't going to change. She had tried her best to prove that she was worthy to play any aggressive sports like Marth or Roy or Link. However, it didn't seem to have an effect on him…

"You should reconsider about playing for the boy's soccer team," Mr. Jackson finally said.

"WHAT?" Marth and Samus shouted at the same time.

* * *

**Thanks for all of the lovely reviews for the first chapter. I'm looking forward to hear more of your comments.**

**Love,**

**-BKP**


	3. Boy's Team and lesbians UNITE!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Super Smash Brothers Melee.**

* * *

"**When you feel like criticizing anyone, just remember that all the people in this world haven't had all the advantages that you've had." – Nick Carraway from ****The Great Gatsby**** by F. Scott Fitzgerald. **

**Chapter 3 – Boy's Team and lesbians… UNITE!**

Samus finished stripping off her gym top off her head. She had pulled off the cotton white, gym top with the Super Smash Brothers symbol on the left breast of the shirt. She sighed heavily, from the tugging of the top of the gym uniform, as she fidgeted with the lock on her locker. She held her white shirt in her left hand, as her right hand still fumbled as she turned the lock to its combination in her bra. She opened her blue, gym locker door, as she hastily stuffed the shirt in. The girl's room was always neat and tidy due to the fact that the girls didn't actually participate in gym class. Though, it was going to slightly change due to Samus Aran. She was somewhat pleased in herself with what had happened in the fields today in gym class. She heavily sighed, now that all of her fun was gone. Though, it didn't stop her from being a tad bit happy with everything so far. She had been able to release her energetic self out on the soccer field, and someone had seen that. In correction though, not _someone_ had seen her abilities, but _everyone_ had seen her skills at soccer.

"I can't believe you did that," A voice from behind her said.

Samus immediately spun around to find herself in front of Zelda. Zelda still had an astounded look upon her face at Samus' athletic abilities. The bounty hunter couldn't help, but grin in pride. She was so thankful that Fox had tackled that forward, whatever his name was. Without that little injury, she wouldn't be able to play for the white, boy's soccer team. She felt like jumping up and down, shouting out loud cries of glee. Never, in her life, did she expect this one the first day of school! Surely, she had hoped that Mr. Jackson would consider her to play on the boy's soccer team... Someday. But not today! Samus could barely contain her excitement and happiness. She let out a little, girly squeal of happiness as she faced Zelda.

"I know! It's awesome, isn't it? I feel… I don't know what _to_ feel, but I haven't felt like this in a long time!" Samus exclaimed as she quickly stepped over to Zelda and hugged her tightly. After Samus let go of the turned-into-frightened Zelda, she hugged the already-frightened-of-everything Peach. She started to put away her gym sneakers, when Zelda began to speak after she calmed down from Samus' hugging.

"But why do you really want to play on the boy's soccer team? I thought you said that the females have their own team as well," Zelda inquired to Samus. The bounty hunter finished putting away her sneakers at the top of her locker, when she faced Zelda again.

"Well, how do I say this? Okay, to be frank with you… the girl's soccer team in this high school SUCKS. They are all a bunch of sissies that deserve to have the soccer ball thrown at them. But the boy's team… it's like… an ACTUAL soccer game. They don't just stand around and try to look gorgeous in the game, but they actually PLAY. And when they play, they play with their hearts," Samus finished off.

The astonished Zelda only could lift up both of her eyebrows, as Samus got on her school shirt. Zelda was putting away her own belongings in her locker, as Peach was doing the same. Though, none of them noticed what Samus was thinking about or doing at the moment. The bounty hunter was still smiling at herself for everything that happened today. She was still enjoying the gloating of the fact she was now on the boy's soccer team! And how could she not forget the look upon Marth's face when Mr. Jackson told the whole gym class she was going to be on the team! The flash of what had happened ten minutes ago, quickly reminisced in her head.

* * *

"_You should reconsider about playing for the boy's soccer team," Mr. Jackson finally said._

"_WHAT?" Marth and Samus shouted at the same time. _

_They were both amazed to hear those words out of Mr. Jackson's mouth. The two aggressive players of soccer both had bewildered look upon their faces as they both continued to gape at Mr. Jackson's decision in amazement. Though, they were both amazed to hear those words from gym teacher/soccer coach, one of them was pleased to hear the news, while the other was not. Marth was definitely not the one to be extremely happy to hear this news. For he immediately scowled at the idea of Samus playing for the boy's team. _

"_Coach! I will __**NOT**__ have some girl play on our team! It's against the rules, isn't it? We can't allow her to play! Besides, she deserves to play on the __**GIRL'S**__ team, where she can be actually associated with __**FEMALES**__!" Marth retorted, as Samus shot him another death glare._

"_Since when did __**YOU**__ have the right to go around and say what the rules of the school are? Mr. Jackson knows the rules himself, because he's a __**TEACHER!**__ He made this decision, not you, Lowell! Nobody asked for __**YOUR**__ opinion!" Samus screamed back. Marth scowled once again, as his brain had already come up with some sort of comeback towards Samus._

"_But I am __**student council's president**__ of __**THIS**__ school! I am also captain of the soccer team! So I have __**EVERY**__ right to decide who should be on our team and who shouldn't!" Marth exclaimed back at Samus._

"_It doesn't give you the right to control __**MY**__ personal feelings about playing the boy's soccer team. And it doesn't give you the right to defy Mr. Jackson's wishes either!" Samus yelled back at Marth. _

_As the two continued to argue with each other, only Mr. Jackson could produce a sweat drop at the side of his head. All the boys on both the white and yellow team also just shook their heads, at the silly, immature behavior of both Samus and Marth. One would seriously think better about the student council president of the school. However, Marth was not a person to argue with when it came to managing everything in the school. The two were still dueling each other with words, as both of their angers slowly rose up. Soon, they were going to both explode with anger at each other. _

_As this argument proceeded though, all the girls on the benches could only glare at Samus for being able to be around Marth, Link, and Roy for the boy's soccer team. They all regretted for not participating in the game sooner. Now their chance to be with Marth, Link, or Roy was gone. While most of the girls sulked in disappointment, only Zelda could face Peach for the moment. The Princess of Hyrule observed Peach's face to see as if she was as amazed as she was at Samus' strength. It turns out, the nervous, quiet girl was a bit surprised, but not as much as she would expect. Though, Peach knew Samus longer than Zelda, so it was expected that Peach knew more about her than Zelda. _

"_She's amazing, isn't she?" Zelda whispered to Peach, to see what she would say._

_Only Peach nervously nodded her head, not uttering a word. At the sight of Peach's response, Zelda only produced a slight disappointed, yet worried look. She had hoped that this girl could perhaps speak some more words, rather than remain silent. From the moment Zelda had seen Peach, she knew there was something was wrong with her. Something that was yet to be sealed in her mind forever. Though, it was all up to Peach if she wished to unseal this troubling thing in her mind. It would take a lot of patience and support, though she had the choice of breaking out soon. After she turned away from Peach at the moment, Zelda was still astonished at Samus' abilities though. She stared at the bounty wide eyed for a moment, as she watched the heated discussion between Marth and Samus. After one remark made by Samus about his stupid president ways, Marth could only let out an irritated yell, as he faced Mr. Jackson._

"_Coach! It's not right to have a girl on the boy's soccer team! She is a female, and she belongs to the girl's team! We can't have her on the team! It's just not right. The principal of the school wouldn't approve! … And tell Aran to leave my cat out of this argument!" Marth yelled at the gym teacher. Mr. Jackson produced another sweat drop from his head, as he tried to calm Marth down. Just as Samus' temper was feared all around the school, it was the same for Marth._

"_Eh… Lowell… Please, calm down. Do you really want to lose against Rustenburg this year? You can't allow a person with such great talent at soccer go to waste, if you can beat Rustenburg like that! You said yourself; you'd do anything and take anyone on the team to beat Rustenburg!" Mr. Jackson said, as Marth's anger slowly dropped. It was true that he had said those words himself. A man never takes back his words._

"_Yes, I did say that, Coach… BUT! When I said that, I meant someone who is NOT a female like Aran! Don't get me wrong, Coach… I would LOVE to have a girl on the team who could kick Rustenburg's ass, but not a girl like Aran!" Marth exclaimed, as Samus continued to glare at him._

"_Mr. Jackson. I have EVERY right to be on the boy's soccer team. It's my decision that I want to play. If you wish to win against Rustenburg, I will have no problem with lending my skills towards the team and school to win. I am a student of the Super Smash Brothers High School, and I wish to win against Rustenburg at all costs as well," Samus spoke proudly to Mr. Jackson. _

_In her mind though, Samus only smirked. She was good at sucking up to people. Especially if it was someone she hated, like Mr. Jackson for being a sexist and underestimating her soccer abilities. At the sound of Samus' words Mr. Jackson only gave a surprised to see how prideful Samus was about her high school. Everyone in the gym class fell for Samus' sucking up towards Mr. Jackson except for Marth. Marth knew Samus all too well. He knew what kind of sickening being she was inside. And how he loathed her for saying those words! There was more rage boiling up inside of him, as he wished to pound the ground right now, in anger._

"_Coach… We can't allow her on the team. It's against the rules…" Marth said slowly. _

_This was just perfect for him. His mind had run out of points to say for not allowing Samus on the team. He cursed himself over and over again in his head. As Mr. Jackson raised another eyebrow at Marth's stubborn behavior, he could only think about what to say next._

"_Hmmm… That is true, Lowell. But I don't think the Master Hand will make such a big deal out of it, if Aran wants to play on the soccer team. I certainty have no objections, and by the looks of it… your teammates doesn't either. Lowell, we are a team. We are one. We have to work together. Just because everyone disagrees with you about your opinion, doesn't mean that things should go your way. But then again… It's all up to Miss Aran to decide if she wants to play or not… Do you wish to play for the Super Smash Brothers High School boy's soccer team, Aran?" Mr. Jackson asked._

_Samus could only look at everyone for a moment. Everyone was wondering the same thing. If she was going to accept. She first looked at all the boys on the yellow team, they had slight looks of disappointment from not being able to stop Samus, but they also had looks of hope in their faces if Samus were to join the team. When her eyes wandered back to the metal benches with all the girls on it, she saw that Zelda was smiling softly at her. The princess of Hyrule's smiling was urging her to do it. When her eyes looked at Peach, she only had that petrified, worried look upon her face. All the members of the MRL Fan Club had glares on their faces, as they were all angry at Samus for showing off her skills. When she looked at Link, he had that cold look on his face that he always had. She looked at Roy, who just remained serious about the decision just like Mr. Jackson. And when she finally glanced at Marth, she saw he was glaring at her just like the members of the MRL Fan Club. As she faced Mr. Jackson, she could only smirk at him. She was sure that the answer she was going to give him was going to send Marth into completely agony._

* * *

And that was it to Samus' triumphant feeling of accomplishment for soccer. She kept on smiling at herself as she dressed herself in the proper school uniform clothes. As all the other girls did the same, she noticed that Zelda was observing some undergarments that Megan Anderson was wearing. What Zelda was staring at was the type of undergarment that was a narrow piece of cloth that passed through Megan's long, lanky legs and up to between her buttocks. Zelda was immediately grossed out at the sight of that, as Samus couldn't help but cringe at the sight as well. Megan Anderson truly was a disgusting female. Samus only sighed, as she would have explain to Zelda what that "special undergarment" was. It would be sickeningly gross to do so, but she would have to do it. 

"That's a thong that Anderson is wearing," Samus said from behind her. As Zelda spun around to look at Samus in the eye, she had a confused look upon her face.

"A thong?" She repeated in naivety.

"Yes, a thong. And yes, it's an undergarment. And yes, people here in THIS time thinks it's sexy to wear something like that," Samus explained, as she took out her pants from the gym locker.

"So, people think that… if one wears some kind of undergarment similar to that… it's attractive?" Zelda asked again.

"Yes, they do. Only perverts like Lowell think it's sexy to do so," Samus sighed again, as she finally slammed her gym locker shut. She sighed heavily again at the process of explaining everything to Zelda. "You better not stare too long, before they think that you are a lesbian or something."

Zelda's eyes quickly averted to the ground, as soon as Samus. Thank the Goddesses that Samus' timing for everything was right, because just as Zelda looked away, Megan glanced behind her to see if anyone was staring at her. As Samus was going to put on her top over her head, she noticed a girl staring at her bra. This girl had been staring at Samus' chest for a long period of time, and it slightly irritated her that a lesbian in the locker room was doing so. She studied the girl for a moment, as she noticed that this girl was about a foot short than she was. She had brown skin, which showed she was some part of Middle Eastern Asia. She was flat chested with her black hair falling to her shoulders, making her breasts look slightly smaller. It didn't matter, because the girl was almost practically flat chested. It was really awkward for a long period of time, until Samus only sighed and confronted a girl with a question.

"What?" She demanded.

"They are perfect," she merely whispered.

"What are?" Samus demanded again, as she was a little bit annoyed at the girl's actions.

"Isn't it obvious? Your boobies!" the girl said again. Samus only managed to produce a sweat drop from her head.

"Right…" She turned away from the strange girl as she began to pull her top over her head. But the girl wasn't going to allow her to get away from her that easily. She immediately stopped Samus from pulling the shirt over her head as she continued to talk with Samus.

"I'm going to rape you someday because you have nice boobies!" the girl exclaimed, with a WIDE look in her eyes. Not knowing how to respond to that, Samus could only shift her eyes from the left to the right.

"Erm… Okay… Your name is Mariam Ahmed, right?" Samus asked the girl. The girl, who still had that wide eye expression on her face, slowly nodded her head up and down. She was beginning to creep Samus out with her odd behavior. "Well, I declare you as weird now… I gotta go, bye!"

Samus immediately pulled the top over her head, as she bumped into the fully changed Zelda. Zelda, who didn't notice that Samus had bumped into her from behind, leaned forward and was almost going to fall down on the floor. Until Megan Anderson turned around and stepped in front of them, preventing the both of them from falling. Though, as Megan Anderson did that, Zelda's hand had to land on Megan's right boob. They both stood there, shocked, at that moment to see that sight. They didn't know what to say at that time, as they were frozen in their spots. At the accidental grope of Megan's boob, Zelda immediately flushed her face, as she turned away and squeaked out an apology. Though, once her humiliation was slightly over from Megan, the princess looked up to see that Megan as leaning against the ear of Rachael, as she whispered something. By the looks it, Megan kept on glancing back and forth from her friend and to Zelda. The president of the MRL Fan Club had a look of cunningness in her face, as she continued to whisper in Rachael's ear. Zelda could also see that Rachael was enjoying whatever information that Megan was providing to her. As Zelda, shamefully looked away from them and approached Samus again, the bounty hunter could only shake her head at both of the members of the MRL Fan Club.

"Sorry about that. I know I should have been more careful. I am truly sorry. But this is just great. Now, the whole club will think that you are a lesbian!" Samus exclaimed in a sarcastically enthusiastic way.

Zelda shamefully averted her eyes to the ground, as she didn't know what to say. She tried her best to give everyone the best impression of her, but she had already failed thanks to that stupid rumor that Megan was probably sending out right now. At the look at Zelda's depression, Samus' face immediately softened up as she would comfort her newly developed friend.

"Hey, don't mind them. They are just bitches. You can't win them over. No one can. Not even if you cut off all of your hair for them, groveled their feet, and waxed their eyebrows, legs, and arms for them. No matter what you do, no one can win them over. Perhaps maybe Lowell, Flores, and Wright, but no one else. But just keep in mind this. You have done nothing so far, but you have already won me over," Samus declared.

When Zelda looked up to face the fearless bounty hunter, she was gone. Before she knew it, she was temporarily alone in the locker room. As she glanced down her watch, she saw that she would be late for next class if she didn't leave the locker room now. She quickly gathered all of her belongings, as she made sure that her gym locker was closed. She opened up the side of her backpack to pull out her schedule for the day, as she glanced at it. The class she had next was… Spanish. She stared at the room number printed in ink on her schedule as she hurried out of the locker room and into the halls. The halls were already buzzing with a lot of people, but Zelda still feared that she was late. She kept on dashing down the halls, and bumping into people she didn't know.

She kept on running, as she looked down at her schedule. What she didn't notice, is that when she was about to make a right down a corner, she bumped into a young man right in front of his chest. She let out a cry, as she fell down backwards on her bottom as the young man himself did the same. Zelda shook her head a few times, to get her back to her senses, as she stood up properly. She looked down to see if the young man was alright, but she knew she wouldn't have time to ask such silly questions for now. She quickly scrimmaged up her books, and slung her backpack over her shoulder.

"I'm terribly sorry about bumping into you, but I am in a hurry!" Zelda exclaimed as she turned from the corner and down the hallways.

The young man was still seated down on the ground, as he shook his head as well. His textbooks and papers laid right in front of him, as he was still slightly recovering from what just happened. Link was a little bit irritated at the clueless girl who had bumped into him, but he knew there was nothing he could do now. If he had the chance, he would have not hesitated into remarking some kind of cold hearted comment towards her. But then again, perhaps he should rethink that. She did look oddly familiar, but he couldn't grasp it. He knew he had seen her before, but where? He didn't have a chance to closely study her face, because she went and was gone in less than a flash. Though why should he care? She was just some random girl he saw, right? But something inside told him it was more than that. Perhaps, he should keep an eye out for her in case of anything happening to him.

"Who was she, anyways?" Link wondered aloud to himself. As he stopped to think back for a moment, the bell rang. He frowned heavily, as he wasn't able to figure it out himself. He hated it when his thinking was always disrupted by something or someone. It was usually Marth who disrupted his thinking, but now it was that obnoxious bell.

"Crap. I'm going to be late for class."

* * *

**I am also proud to say that **_**crystalicios**_** has made her cameo in this chapter!**

**Love,**

**-BKP**


	4. Phenomena

**Disclaimer: I do not own Super Smash Brothers Melee.**

* * *

"**It is not enough to help the feeble up, but to support him after." – William Shakespeare.**

**Chapter 4 – Phenomena**

Zelda quickly entered in the Spanish room, where her teacher, Ms. Brown would be teaching. She glanced around to see the teacher, when she finally spotted a petite, young woman who was gathering things up at her organized desk. She studied her quickly to see that she had very large brown eyes, and brown hair tied up into a pony tail. Zelda quickly looked around to see if she was the last in the classroom, but to her surprise, she was one of the few that were present. She still nervously looked around to see make sure that she wasn't in the wrong classroom, when the teacher herself came over to her.

"Hello, are you looking for something?" the teacher asked in a friendly voice.

"Eh… Erm, is this Ms. Brown's Spanish class?" Zelda immediately asked, fearing she had gotten the wrong classroom.

"Yes, this is Ms. Brown's class. What do you need help with?" Ms. Brown asked nicely.

"Erm, I'm Zelda Harkinian. I am not late, am I?"

"Oh, Zelda! It's nice to finally meet you. Hold on a minute; let me check you off on attendance. No, you are not late. You are actually quite early. I'm glad that you were able to get here. First day at school is quite tough, isn't it?" Ms. Brown said, looking down at her notepad. Zelda nodded her head.

"Why don't you take a seat next to Annette, over there," Ms. Brown instructed, as she motioned her hand to the right half of the room.

"Erm, alright. Thank you, Ms. Brown."

Zelda look around to where Ms. Brown gestured her hand to find the girl that Ms. Brown said to be an Asian girl with black hair and brown eyes. Her skin was lighter than that Mariam girl's skin, though it was darker than Zelda's own skin. She had unique facial features that distinguished her from a lot of other students. Well, in reality, all students had unique facial features that distinguished them from everyone else. This Annette girl had layered black hair, as the parting of the hair was separated at the left side of her head. She did look quite well reserved and quiet for the most part, as Zelda hoped she wouldn't be so nasty, and could actually talk unlike Peach.

"Erm… Hello. My name is Zelda," Zelda told the girl, as she took a seat next to the girl's left.

"Oh, nice to meet you, Zelda. My name is Annette," said the black haired girl.

Zelda tried her best to smile at the girl, as she smiled back at her. In her mind, Zelda felt reassured. Perhaps, this high school wasn't going to be so bad after all… At least her table partner wouldn't be so nasty towards her unlike Megan, Rachael, or possibly Caitlin. Though, her happiness was only short lived when the class was soon to be filled with loud, annoying jocks who were only taking Spanish because it was required. At the horrible sight of the jocks, Annette's face turned a little bit cold to see the idiotic people. But she remained nice towards Zelda, when asked a question about what Ms. Brown was talking about. Ms. Brown went over the necessary things that all teachers go over on their first day of school. The necessary agreement forms that all students must fill out on their own with their parents to take this class. She also handed out a form that demanded that they would pay for their own textbooks and workbooks. After the brief introduction to the class, the class was dismissed.

* * *

It was still surprising to see how much her day was passing in such a short period of time. The time was only 11 o'clock AM, and Zelda only had one other class to go to before she had lunch. The class she had to attend to next was… French. How glorious. Two language classes in a row, though it didn't seem to be THAT horrible. Her teacher was Mrs. Kevorkian as her French teacher. As she entered the classroom, which was to the left of Ms. Brown's Spanish class, she found herself acquainted with another petite figure that was only a tad bit shorter than Ms. Brown. She had a serious, yet compassionate face towards Zelda, and the Princess knew that so far, she would enjoy getting along with her teachers.

As Mrs. Kevorkian instructed her to go and find a seat. She noticed that Peach Toadstool was in her class as well. At the sight of a familiar face, Zelda's heart lifted now knowing that she was not alone unlike in her Spanish class. She immediately took a seat right next to Peach. As Peach only looked up at Zelda nervously as she quickly flashed her a smile that lasted less than a second. Zelda tried to smile with reassurance and comfort. After Samus had said those words to hear after gym class was over, she wished to help Peach as well. She wanted to return the kindness and the disappearance of worries by spreading those feelings to Peach. Though, Zelda was famous for those kind of smiles, it didn't produce any effect on Peach for the first day of school. Peach could only turn away from her, and face the head of the classroom with such depression. When Zelda glanced around the room to see if something was causing the depression for Peach, she saw the targets.

Right across the left side of the room that Peach and Zelda was Megan Anderson and Caitlin Russell. At the sight of those two girls, Zelda flinched a bit. Due to that nasty rumor that Megan was probably sending around about her, Zelda knew that these girls were up to no good. Despite however they may act around her, she knew that the information that Samus had provided her was correct. The two were both gossiping about something useless and nothing particularly interesting for the Princess of Hyrule. As Peach's eyes slowly, but self consciously shifted to the right at their direction, the two presidents of the MRL Fan Club they both sent looks of deceit and cunningness. As soon as Peach had seen their reaction, her eyes quickly focused back in front of her at her hands. French class droned on, with Mrs. Kevorkian explaining the strict rules she would have for the class and all of her expectation. Zelda listened, as she followed along with the sheet of paper that Mrs. Kevorkian had given her. Only after forty five minutes later, the bell rang. Students quickly gathered up their belongings, as Mrs. Kevorkian said "au revoir" to them when they exited the classroom. What did Zelda have now? Oh yes, it was disgustingly, sweet… lunch time!

* * *

Everyone in the school had the same time for lunch. That meant all of the seniors were near the far left corner of the room, all the juniors were in the far right corner of the room, all the sophomores were in the close right part of the room, and the freshmen were in the close left part of the room. For people who didn't care about sitting in places determined by their grade they either just sat near the left or right part of the wall, or in the center of the room. Unfortunately though, the smack dab middle of the room was reserved for the ever so popular boys of the school! Meaning, that the lunch tables in the middle of the cafeteria were reserved for Marth, Roy, and Link! Aka the boys whom most of the girls in the school worshiped.

As Zelda entered the lunch room by herself, she nervously looked around, wondering where to sit. Samus and Peach was the only people who seemed nice enough to interact with her, and if Zelda dared to say so, she would say that they were friends. Though, for now, she decided to get the idea of food out of the way by purchasing some lunch food. When she glanced down to her purse, she noticed a strange currency her father had provided for her. The money was made out of paper, with different colors for each paper including purple, blue, and red. She ignored this fact, until when she came up to buy food. As she looked from all the dishes that the lunch room provided, none of them seemed to be familiar. In fact, they all seemed to be disgusting and sickening. The only thing that Zelda could do was create her own salad from the salad bar. She hastily paid at cashier, when she found herself not knowing where to sit again.

She wouldn't dare to go up to a random table and ask politely if she could be seated next to them. She didn't have enough guts to do so. She knew that Samus wouldn't have a trouble at all, for asking anyone from anything. But Zelda was still too shy compared to Samus. She still nervously looked around when someone called her name. As she spun around from behind her, she was relieved to see that Samus had been shouting out her name in the lunch room, near the left part of the all at the cafeteria. When Zelda had faced her, Samus had smiled at her for finally recognizing her. The Princess also noticed that the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom was also seated next to her, nibbling at her sandwich she had brought from home. The cafeteria was buzzing with so much noise, that Zelda had probably not heard Samus' cries earlier. She happily made her way towards the table where Samus and Peach were seated.

"Hey! So, long day so far, eh? Anyways, what was up with that? I kept on calling your name, but you didn't seem to hear me!" Samus said, as Zelda properly seated herself next to Peach. The Princess looked around to see that Peach was only nibbling at her white, bread sandwich with her brown, paper lunch bag close by. Samus was sitting across from her on the other side of the table, with nothing but a bottle of water for her lunch.

"Eh heh… Thanks, but I guess I wasn't paying attention to my surroundings. And I guess it has been a long day. I just got out of French with Peach," Zelda said, as she stabbed her fork into her salad.

"Oh yeah? How was it? And wise decision there, Princess. You should note to never eat any of the school's lunches except for the salads. The salads are always fresh, but everything is… icky. Last year, a freshman dared another freshman to eat chicken on the menu from the school, and only taking one BITE out of the chicken, he had to be sent to the nurse's office right away. He was so sick that he wasn't able to go to school for a month," Samus told her. Zelda's eyes widened in amazement, as she finished chewing the lettuce of the salad.

"Are you serious? What could he do for one whole month without attending school?" Zelda asked Samus. Samus shrugged her shoulders, as she took a sip of her bottled water.

"I have no idea… I think he probably just stayed in bed for that whole month. Anyways, how were the classes that you had after gym? Were any of the people there nice?" Samus said.

"Erm… Well, I had Spanish after gym class. I have Ms. Brown as my Spanish teacher. I guess the people there were alright. Most of them were really loud, but I am not sure. I am seated next to this girl named… Annette, I think… She seems nice, but I can't be too sure of that," Zelda explained as she took another bite out of her salad.

"Oh yeah… Annette is normally pleasant. She's definitely not popular like Megan, Caitlin, or Rachael. But she is nice. She's friends with that crazy, lesbo freak named Mariam. She was the one who commented on my boobies today. So who else is in your Spanish class?" Samus asked, as Zelda listed off a bunch of random people that even you would have a hard time remembering who was who. After Zelda had finished listing the people off, Samus could only gape at her for the amount of people in her class.

"Oh my God… You can't be serious. You have… a lot of jerks and ditzs in your class," Samus could only state. Zelda nodded her head in agreement.

"Anyways, could I see your schedule? I know that I read it earlier today, but I wanna copy it down so I know what you have and I don't have to ask you," Samus said, as she took another sip from her bottled water.

"Sure thing," Zelda replied as she rummaged through her backpack. She finally found her schedule, which was… neatly still paper looking. Samus began to furiously scribble down Zelda's schedule which looked like this:

1. English

2. Gym/Physical Education

3. Spanish

4. French.

-Lunch Period-

5. Study

6. Geometry

7. Biology

8. World Geography

"So this means, I have Study, Geometry, and Biology with you, eh?" Samus asked, as she didn't look up from copying Zelda's schedule down.

"Yes, I guess so," Zelda replied as she continued to eat out of her salad.

"Well, Peach has Study and Biology the same time we do, so that means all three of us are together in that class," Samus said.

The bounty hunter had finally finished fully copying down every subject on her white lined paper, as she took another sip of bottled water. She sighed heavily, when she noticed two specific girls strutting over near their table. She cocked an eyebrow towards them, knowing the presidents of the MRL Fan Club, were up to no good. Caitlin Russell and Rachael Livingston were coming over their table. What they were demanding remained a mystery to both Samus and Peach. As soon as Peach saw those two girls coming over, she immediately bolted out of her chair and left to go the bathroom. Samus and Zelda only watched her abruptly leave the cafeteria, only astounded to see Peach leave out on them like that. Samus knew though, that Peach was afraid of these girls. She didn't know why, but Peach just was.

Even though Samus contained a lot of physical strength, she knew that she was no match against Rachael Livingston and Caitlin Russell alone. This was a hideous trap for both Samus and Zelda. They were being cornered by the two most popular girls in school. Rachael's eyes glowered at Samus as she saw the look the bounty hunter was giving her. The bounty hunter was trying to give her a fearless, fierce look, though Rachael knew that there was at least _some_ form of fear in her. Everyone feared the presidents of the MRL Fan Club, and one of the reasons _why_ a lot of girls were in the club, was because they feared Caitlin Russell, Megan Anderson, and Rachael Livingston all at once. The two predators had found their prey as the quickly stood in front of Zelda Harkinian.

"Hi! I don't think we've introduced ourselves properly. My name is Rachael Livingston and that's Caitlin Russell," the woman obsessed with Roy said to them, as she motioned her hand next to Caitlin.

She sweetly, yet cosmetically smiled at the Hylian female. As the Princess of Hyrule glance to see Caitlin's expression, she saw that her face was filled with the same fakeness as Rachael. Zelda obviously had no idea what to say to the other girl, given off her impression, though she could only nod her head as if she understood what she was saying.

"Anyways, one of my best friends named Megan… she's like over there in the center of the room, near the table with Roy, Marth, and Link, is wondering if you want to come and sit with us. I mean, alright, like… If you want to do well in this school, you have to be there when people give you is lending hand, you know? Anyways, since you are new here and all, we just want to help you out and stuff. I mean, no offense, but you don't want yourself hanging out with the WRONG SORT of people, right?" Rachael asked.

She put a lot of emphasis on "wrong sort" as her eyes were shifted towards Samus at the time. Samus only glared back at Rachael for trying to ignore her presence, as Rachael just rapidly chewed her gum in her mouth. At that remark, however, Zelda's anger only boiled a tad bit. Even though she had met Samus only a couple hours ago, she could tell that Samus was someone you could trust. By her protective behavior and rigid, yet comforting words, there was compassion and loyalty to her friend unlike any other. It was shown in her eyes. Zelda could only stare up at Rachael and Caitlin for a moment, as she finally figured out how to answer Rachael's question.

"If you were going to mean no offense towards my decision of the people I choose to be acquainted with so far, you wouldn't have even mentioned it. In fact, you wouldn't even have come here to waste your time here to tell me this sort of advice. I am an independent Hylian, and I know what's best for me. Perhaps, you could do the same and mind your own business?" Zelda coldly inquired to Rachael.

At the statements that Zelda had declared to Rachael, Samus could only smirk at her. The bounty hunter felt a sudden jolt of pride for the Princess of Hyrule, and knew that they were meant to be friends. Both of the blondes were even more pleased to see Rachael Livingston's offended and taken back face when she heard the witty comment that the heir of Hyrule made. Caitlin also scowled at Zelda for making that sort of comment towards her friend, as she took Rachael's left arm and started to leave. However, before the two could leave, Rachael made another comment to make sure that Zelda would get this fact straight.

"Listen, we are only trying to save you from yourself and us. If you want to hang out with some poor, low lives like that little bitch like Aran. You're going to be dead from the both of us. But if you side with us, there will be no harm done. It's best to have less mental and emotional pain than physical…" Rachael said, as both of the presidents of the MRL Fan Club left the two alone.

As Zelda sighed stressfully from the encounter with the two, she heard someone close by congratulating her by clapping her hands. She looked up to see Samus' smiling face across the lunch table from her. The fearless blonde was smiling with such pride, as Zelda smiled back at her. The two both looked at each other for a moment, with no words to be said about the Princess' telling off of Rachael Livingston and Caitlin Russell. What the two didn't notice was, that another blonde princess, who had cowardly run away from the scene, had saw what had happened. And what else they didn't know was that this princess was slightly inspired by both the bounty hunter's and the princess of Hyrule's boldness and courage. Though, she was known for her abnormally shy ways, the princess was only slightly inspired. She did wish she could be as brave and make some kind of wise crack remark to the girls, but she doubted herself more than anyone. The Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom only sighed and walked back to the lunch table once the coast was clear.

* * *

**Thank you all once again for the encouragement and support. It's very highly appreciated!**

**Love, **

**-BKP**


	5. Studying with a Lioness and a Rabbit

**Disclaimer: I shall never own Super Smash Brothers Melee nor will I EVER own Nintendo.**

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"**He who has imagination without learning has wings and no feet." – Joseph Joubert. **

**Chapter 5 – Studying with a Lioness and a Rabbit**

"Hey Peach! Where did you run off to?" Samus asked, as the Princess marched up to the table.

"…"

"Come on! I was a little bit worried to see that you disappeared like that. It's okay now. Rachael and Caitlin won't hurt you or anything, now that they left and stuff."

"…"

"… Peach, are you alright?" Another voice asked.

As the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom glanced from her hands in her lap up to the person to her left, she saw a very concerned princess. Princess Zelda Harkinian of Hyrule faced her with the same worried, troubled look that Samus gave to her. If there was anything that Peach Toadstool wished to do now, it was to break out into sobs and just leave school. She hated school. She feared it as well. Hate was fear, and fear was hate. Ever since that incident in middle school, she swore to herself that she would never, ever go back to school. Though, her parents wished more than ever for her to go back to school. It was for the benefit of her education. They couldn't ship her off an all girls private school, because that would have been too far away from her parents. Peach knew that if she were to attend a private girl's school, then she could not and would not feel the reassurance from her parents, unlike anyone else. It was her duty as a princess to finish up school, but she it was terrifying for her. Though, she felt that she could trust both Samus and Zelda, she was not ready to tell them the truth. She had always wondered if whether or not they would accept for her for it, and then later betray her… but something inside her told her that she wasn't ready. She was happy to be miserable at the moment.

At the sight of the Princess of Mushroom Kingdom not responding to any of questions, they knew it was hopeless for now. Samus and Zelda could only both sigh at the same time, as they continued their conversation. Being a bit antisocial now, Peach could only sit there in the lunch room, thinking. She wanted to join their conversation. She wanted to share the laughter and smiles that they had painted on their faces as well. Though something strongly held her back. She though back at her past about how dreadful and threatening it was… Who could ever love her for that? A past where she had experienced all these feelings, with no one to talk to. There was certainty something wrong with her. She knew this all too well. She loathed herself for being abnormal. She loathed herself even more to know that she could never become normal ever again. She wished for change, but there was no hope for her now… It was all too late.

"Peach, are you alright?" Zelda asked again.

Or maybe it wasn't too late. Even this girl, who didn't seem to be so daring to remark such a comments towards Rachael Livingston and Caitlin Russell, was able to gather up a little bit of her courage. A tiny crack in Peach's grey walls around her had shown a bit of light. Perhaps, she and Zelda were very similar after all. Both appeared to be physically weak. Though, they possessed a hidden strength inside unlike any other normal person. They were both princesses after all… Princesses can make a daring comeback at any time when they seem to be suffering of something deep inside their hearts. And they will prevail. They will prevail from the darkest corner in Nintendo City into the bright lights of glory and success. At the sight of the Princess not responding at her, the bounty hunter and Princess knew that she would not respond them for now. Maybe there would be a time when that little, shy gardenia would be soon blossoming into a proud flower. For now, Samus, Peach, and Zelda could only head to their next class, after lunch was over.

* * *

"So anyways, study is held in the school library. We have to be really quiet, or the teachers that watch over us will turn very pissy and will send us to the principal's office or something…" Samus told Zelda, as they walked down the crowded hall of the school.

"Oh yes, by the way… My father never told me this, but who's the principal of the school?" Zelda asked.

"Well, to be honest, I am not exactly sure… his name is… the Master Hand? It's weird, isn't it? I don't know… Our school is literally messed up and I have no idea what the heck is with the principal. Actually, I've never even SEEN the principal in the hallways ever. The teachers don't even see him as well. They are able to handle everything on their own for some odd reason… It's the same thing with the vice principal. I think he is named… Crazy Hand or something strange like that," Samus explained to her, as Zelda stared at Samus in confusion.

"… Erm… Alright," Zelda said, as her voice trailed off into confusion.

The bright young woman still pondered over the thoughts of why the students were not that familiar with their principle. How could everyone know what was going on when nobody had actually sent the principle? Wouldn't be impossible for the school to properly run, if none of the students were able to communicate with the principle in person? And the teachers. How would the teachers be able to discuss necessary topics about the school if they were not able to see the vice principle or the principle of the high school? These thoughts were dancing around in her head, as she continued to walk from the cafeteria to the library. The female trio came to a halt once they reached the library entrance's front desk. A short and chubby lady with round, thick glasses by the name of Mrs. Goldenseal. Her hair was streaked with gray hairs, due to all the stress and hard work it was for being the school's librarian. Her face was saggy, as it showed that she was quite old since she was with the school ever since it had begun. Mrs. Goldenseal slowly glanced up from her book she was reading, as she saw the three youngsters approach her. Her face immediately lit up to see Peach and Samus, considering the fact she adored the two students since they were interested in literature and seemed to be fond of her as their librarian. As her grey eyes focused on the girl in between the two, she wondered who was that girl and where she was from.

"Ah! Samus and Peach! How are you two today? Is everything going well? It's always a pleasure to see two again from last year! Do you mind me telling me who your new friend is?" Mrs. Goldenseal asked in a friendly tone.

"Hey, Mrs. G! What's up? Anyways, this is a new student this year. Her name is Princess Zelda Harkinian of… Hycule, wasn't it?" Samus asked Zelda.

"It's _Hyrule_," Zelda corrected Samus as she smiled at Mrs. Goldenseal. "Yes, it's true that I'm a new student here."

"Oh goodie! We need all the students that we can get for this year for the Super Smash Brothers High School! Anyways, would you mind telling me your student ID number, so I can check you in?" Mrs. Goldenseal asked, as Zelda blankly stared at her.

"My what?"

"Your student ID number," Samus repeated for her. "It's the number they give you to classify which student you are, and who's in your class and all that junk…. It should be written at the top of your schedule."

"Oh, right." Zelda rummaged through her backpack to pull out her schedule. She placed it on the librarian's desk, as she glanced over to read the numbers to the librarian, as she would type them in her computer.

"772188," Zelda read aloud to the librarian as Mrs. Goldenseal typed it in the computer.

"Alright, you are all set. You guys can go and pick a table to work at now. Just be sure to keep it down in the library, so that you don't disturb anyone from their work."

* * *

In the library, there was a huge amount of space in the back of the room, filled with tables and chairs. Most of the tables were either rectangular or circular. However, the tables near the windows were square, with the people sitting near the windows peering over the elevated portion of the school as they could watch people pass the school outside. As they entered this part of the library, Zelda could easily see that everyone else there were already seated and comfortable with their study, as they were all buzzing among themselves, quietly like working bees. They trio slowly approached an empty, square table with three wooden seats around it near the glass windows. Samus immediately grabbed a seat next to Peach and across from Zelda, as she watched Peach look out from the window, and Zelda would give Samus a blank look. The Princess of Hyrule was still very naïve with her surroundings, and was completely and utterly clueless with what she should do now. Considering the fact that this was the first day of school, there was no homework. And first day of school + no homework + study time where no homework is needed to be completed what in the Sacred Realm should I do right now, because I am SO lost! Those kind of thoughts rambled in Zelda's little, confused brain as she still blankly stared at Samus. Samus, whom had no idea what the heck was going on in our lovely princess' fragile little mind, was only able to smile and shrug at her. It wasn't only until shortly, when a question struck in the Hylian Princess' little mind, as she was still confused with something her father mentioned earlier that day.

"Oh yes… Erm… Samus, do you know what "time compression" is, by the way?" Zelda nervously asked, as she feared her new friend would not be able to answer her question. Though, she was wrong. It seemed that Samus clearly knew the answer to her question, as she raised an eyebrow and faced her.

"You haven't figured out what time compression is yet? Ahhh… And I thought you would have already figured it out now… Most people like you would have already found out what time compression is by now. But then, that's what makes you so cute!" Samus sighed slowly, as Zelda gave her a puzzled look. Her face must have been confused with what Samus was saying because multiple question marks were raised over her head and she said: "Eh?" slowly, with her head cocked to her right side in confusion. The bounty hunter closed her eyes for a moment, as she leaned back in her chair with her elbow also on top of the chair.

"Time compression is… when different worlds and times are compressed together in one world. At the exact same time, to give us this universe were people from both the past, present, and future can live together. All at once. You, Zelda, are from the past. Though, you are from a different world compared to Peach and I, you are still in the past," Samus explained, as Zelda's blue eyes widen a bit in shock.

She had been a little bit horror struck to hear these words coming out from the bounty hunter's mouth. What was she talking about? What the heck did she mean that she was from the past? It wasn't possible, now was it? This couldn't be right. Her father must have made a mistake or something with deciding to send her to a high school where time compression is possible. There is no way for a person to be stuck in a place where being in the past, present, AND future was just merely impossible… now was it?

"But that's impossible… You can't… do that, now can you?" Zelda said, as Samus shrugged her shoulders again.

"You are from Hyrule, right? Link is also from Hyrule, and he's from the past just like you. He, just like you, is from Hyrule and from the same time. That's what I've gathered so far, right? So, you two are from the past. Peach is from the present, while I am from the future. I know it's a bit hard to accept, but that's the truth. That's what your dad must have meant by time compression. There must be a lot of differences you have noticed so far due to your surroundings and all that crap, but that's what everything is. Every thing you've seen so far is from the future. All technology and the learning are far more advanced compared to where you live. Your dad must have sent you here for the benefit of your education, since compared to where _you_ live, everything must be pretty crappy. But for me, everything here is pretty easy. I know all this material so damn well, that I don't need to study for anything… Well, maybe a couple of things, but yeah," Samus finished for her.

Zelda was speechless for a moment. What in the world was Samus talking about? She still didn't understand. This was not making any sense to her what so ever. No way… was there anything called time compression. Her tutors never mentioned it. In the castle library, there were no books ever mentioning about time compression. Yet, how was her father aware of this school and all of her surroundings, better than anyone else in Hyrule? Besides from Link, how did her father know about this place? And Link… How did _he_ know about this place? Where did he learn this place from? Where did _he_ gain any information about this place as well? Those questions kept on toying around in Zelda's head that she didn't notice that Samus had reached from her red backpack and pulled out a few books for her on the table.

"What are those?" Zelda inquired immediately, as Samus zipped her backpack back up.

"What do they look like to you? They are guides for newcomers like you. Don't worry about trying to read all of those books all at once. Take it easy when you are surviving here," Samus slowly told her, as Zelda stared at the books.

One of the books had a black and yellow cover on the front, with some kind of cartoonish man on the, which was entitled: Time Compression For Dummies. Another book was entitled: So You Are Stuck in the Future, Now What?, along with another thick, large leather bound book called: Modern Day Language For People in the Past. The last one that Samus had given to Zelda was: A Hyrulean's Guide for Understanding and Fitting In the Modern World. When Zelda closely looked at the author's name for the last book, she noticed something. The author of the book was the exact same name as…

The author of the book was the exact same name as the queen of Hyrule herself. She could only stare at the name on the cover for the moment. That wasn't possible. That was impossible as well. She blinked a few times in skepticism. The name was still written on the cover of the book. She screwed her eyes shut for a moment, as she finally opened them again about ten seconds later. The name was still clearly printed on the front of the novel. Though, she was puzzled, she immediately flipped to the back of the book where they provided a little biography for the author. However, when she did see the back of the book, there was no biography for the author. The Princess could only stare in disbelief though. Everything… was not something that could be true. She would have to be dreaming for that. Was this… all a dream? Or was this a nightmare? If she was dreaming, she wanted to awaken from this horrible dream.

"Hey… Zelda! What's wrong? You look a little bit pale… Are you okay?" Samus asked as Zelda still sunk in her chair, not knowing to say.

Her mother. Her deceased mother whom would never touch the living earth ever again. Though, how was this book been able to be published for this world? She would have to have a serious talk with her father if she was going to understand everything properly. But it was impossible, now wasn't it? There could be no way that she would have been about to be educated here. Zelda admitted that she probably must have paid closer attention to her surroundings, but never… would she expect this from "time compression", as Samus called it. It was still confusing though. Past, present, and future all at once. What had her father been keeping from her all these years? Why hadn't he told this? Zelda frowned slightly at the name of the cover on the book. She was slightly furious to obtain this information on her own to know that her father had been quiet all of this. She would be sure to pay her father a decent visit of anger and slight frustration when she were to come back home. Though, for now, she will shrug it off.

"Erm, yeah, Samus. I'm alright," Zelda replied.

Samus let out a long sigh of relief as she was able to smile at Zelda. She was relieved that Zelda told her that she was alright. For a minute, the bounty hunter was panicking whether or not if Zelda was feeling well. Being the protective young woman she was, the bounty hunter always had a soft spot for her friends. That was the only weakness that the bounty hunter would contain as her personality. The bounty hunter quickly rummaged through the pockets of her skirt to find some gum to chew on, due to her boredom. Peach was already preoccupied with staring at the window in a nervous, yet self conscious way, while Zelda was already reading Time Compression For Dummies, in her hands.

* * *

The bounty hunter's jaws rapidly moved up and down, as her eyes scanned around the room, to see all the other people in their study. She spotted Marth, Roy, and Link, themselves, on the other side of the room, talking amongst each other. Marth and Roy were chatting lively with among each other, sitting across from each other from the table. As for Link was frowning like he always was across the table from Marth, sitting next to Roy, and he probably thinking deeply about something. For a moment, Samus narrowed her eyes at the prince of Altea, hoping he wouldn't notice, though Roy quickly picked up at the visual contact that Samus was giving to Marth, and nudged Marth with his elbow. The blue haired teenager's eyes looked up and caught Samus' glare. He glowered his violet eyes back at the bounty hunter, as anyone in the room could feel this electric vibe in the air, which showed that there was a strong amount of lighting between the two. The rivalry between the prince and the bounty hunter was already sparked in the morning, and both of them wished for something to occur which would test both of their skills. They wished to compete.

After a few moments, Samus' senses also caught that there was another electric vibe that was running in the air, and it was not from Marth. Her eyes quickly shifted to the left side of the room, as she saw the presidents of the MRL Fan Club, along with several members, having a snarl in their faces. Megan Anderson was the one who was sending her the most death glares. It was if a Venus fly trap that would appear to be harmless at times, though she would close her jaws to trap an innocent fly. Megan was already leaning her left side of her body to Caitlin, who was listening to what Megan was saying very closely, and whispering a few words to her. Caitlin nodded her head in response, as she also glared at Samus. Samus was already irritated at them for the early rumors they must have spread to Zelda. Though, what could she do about it? There was no way that she could stop anything. It would be as if she was trying to outrun a cheetah in a race that had already gotten a head start.

She could only glare back at Megan Anderson for giving her that kind of look. To be honest, Samus didn't care for the fact that Megan was the president of the MRL Fan Club. She knew from the first impression she had gathered from her and her friends, that they were detestable. Doing cruel, harsh things towards an innocent rabbit was crucial. Because of what they had done to the rabbit, the rabbit had lost all of her self confidence and her hope was lost for now. The lioness still glared back at the selfish, whorish teenager. She didn't care if that powerful girl had ways to bring Samus' social status down. Though, the bounty hunter swore in her heart, that she would never allow them to harm Zelda or Peach.

As Peach was gazing out from the window, she tried to pretend that she was not here. She did not wish to be here at all. To her, school was hell, and she wanted to leave immediately. It was not only because she struggled a bit with school, it was because of _their_ existence. As long as they lived, she would fear them forever. The pink princess would not and shall not forget the fondness and dreadful memories she had suffered in middle school. It was something that had already lashed her down in a chair, tormented with those haunting memories. Though, she temporarily glanced at Samus and Zelda. They both had confidence in themselves. Confidence… Self confidence was something that Princess Peach had currently lacked. She did at one point of her life brimmed with confidence from head to toe. However, due to _their_ existence, they had stripped her down to nothing. All Peach could do now, was hope for a miracle for her life to become better.

* * *

Zelda had her eyes glued to the pages of the book, as she was still learning about multiple things. It wasn't until long when Samus had also given her an encyclopedia for all modern day technology in the present. She smiled graciously for Samus' helpfulness and kindness towards her, as she noticed Samus' glares towards the presidents of the MRL Fan Club. The look that Samus had given them was filled with revenge. Revenge of what though? It could not be from this morning, because that look seemed to be more hateful. If a person where to compare it for a hatred developed in a short amount of time to a hatred developed gradually over time, they could tell that Samus' hatred for them had been developed long before she came into Samus' life. She also noticed the looks they were giving her. When she read the looks on their faces they said: _"I'll get you back, you little bounty hunter bitch for being able to get close to Marth. He's MINE!"_

It was obvious that Megan and some other fan girls were jealous. Marth usually paid attention to a lot of females in the school, mostly to try and flirt with them; however, it he would only toss girls away as if they were some chew toy. It wasn't because he was a player; it was more of the reasons that they shared none of the same interests as him. All the girls were interested in money, romance novels, make up, and clothes. He wanted someone more than that. Someone who he could talk to about wondrous things in the world. Samus was probably the first girl in Marth Lowell's life to catch his attention greatly, and have him remain interested in her for a long time. He didn't know what kind of attraction he had for her, but he was sure it wasn't romantic. It couldn't possibly romantic. He was now her rival, and he thought the same for her. In fact, he was excited about spending time with Samus, if he were to have a competition involving anything to do with her. He was aware that his friends were not that competitive compared to him, because Link always seemed to frown at Marth's competitive and would always coolly ignore what he was saying. If the Prince of Altea were to greatly provoke him, he would defeat him within less than a second. Roy was his best friend, yet he was not that obsessed about winning. Of course, if he lost, he would be disappointed, but he would like to take the opportunity to learn from his mistakes. Yes, Marth's friends were people who he could never consider to be rivals.

Samus was different. She had the thirst of glory and the will to prove something of herself. She wanted to show that she was worthy enough to play on the boy's soccer team. The bounty hunter wished to prove to the world she was just as tough as any guy on the team, and she could defeat them less than a second. However, because Marth was interested in Samus, it would create more and more hatred from most of the girls in the high school. The girls of the MRL Fan Club were fearful of many things. In fact, they had been fearful of the day where Marth would not be single anymore. Surely, he did flirt with girls, but the girls knew that he just adored playing around with them. No girl had ever sparked any sort of interest as Samus had done. The MRL Fan Club was already planning nasty and cruel ideas for Samus. Not only for Samus though, Samus only would be their main target. For the planned to hurt her friends as well. They would haunt a certain blonde princess of a past… Though, Samus knew that she could never beat them with her social status and with many other things, she could physically beat them. There was a possible way for the fearless, beautiful bounty hunter to defeat the presidents with the MRL Fan Club, but she would have to have two other females at her side to be able to conquer the hardships that she and her friends would face in the future.

* * *

**For the sake of Zelda romance fan fiction and one of the greatest Zelda authors returning, read ****Every Shard of My Heart Belongs to Thee**** by Berlin's Brown Eyes. The author has made a comeback, with fresh, new vocabulary and writing style. Reviews are welcome for my story, but flames are not. **

**Love,**

**-BKP**


	6. Rich

**No, you are not hallucinating. I actually did update. This is what Macadamia nuts and pining away over a guy that looks like a clean-cut, brunette version of Kurt Cobain does to poor little BKP at five o'clock AM.**

**Disclaimer: I shall never and will own Super Smash Brothers Melee. I own this story though, so if you want to copy this story in any such way, fuck off.**

* * *

"**The day shall end, for it's already a bittersweet ending. Though, it has ended, morning shall come again, fresher and brighter than ever. As more and more secrets are revealed." – Babykoalaprincess (I came up with this one off the top of my head. I couldn't find a good quote in my quote book.)**

**Chapter 6 – Rich**

The introductions for Geometry were quite boring, as the teacher, named Mrs. Zimmer, appeared to be overly friendly, yet lacked patience. Patience is what makes a teacher highly successful and well respected from the students of a high school. Since Mrs. Zimmer lacked patience with students, she had little tolerance for anything. So when noise and paper balls were welled up and thrown at the front of the room, she made it clear to anyone that no paper ball would ever to touch the floor of the Geometry room ever again. When Zelda and Samus had entered the room, they saw a woman with a somewhat short temper and little tolerance for immature behavior. It had only been after she finished lecturing the class, she faced the two blonde girls. She did not question the tardiness the both girls had, since it was the first day of school. She simply smiled and welcomed in them in the class. She pointed out the seats, which were unoccupied. Thankfully, there was a table for two, which were free. Zelda let out a sigh of relief, knowing that she wouldn't have to suffer the horrors of having to sit beside someone she didn't know. It wasn't because most people of the class were not friendly, it was the opposite. Zelda feared for being alone with someone she did not get along well, no matter how nice they were due to dissimilar interests.

"It's nice that we are in the same class, right?" Zelda asked Samus with a small smile.

Samus faced her for a moment, and returned the soft expression on her face. She gave her an affirmative response by saying "yes" and nodding her head. In fact, Samus was overjoyed at the fact that she had Zelda in her class and that she was sitting next to her. Besides from Peach, Samus didn't really have friends. Surely, the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom was a nice person to talk to, only Peach was never to respond to her words. The only reason why did Samus hung around with Peach was because she saw something delicate and fragile in Peach's inside, which needed to be carefully protected. Zelda was different though, it appeared that she was emotionally strong. There was only a slight problem with the Princess of Hyrule personality, which Samus had to yet to discover. As Mrs. Zimmer was assigning classroom problems, Samus saw the Princess in complete ever so bittersweet agony. The Princess' hands were running through the top of her head, in stress, as she tried to figure out the problem. She was groaning in frustration and impatience with herself.

"Zelda, do you mind to tell me what's wrong?" Samus queried.

As Zelda faced her friend with her, the bounty hunter could have sworn that all spiritual life had left her body. With her eyelids drooping down on her eyes, she looked as if she was completely miserable. It felt as if the vibrant, cheerfulness princess of Hyrule turned into a depressed woman who was attending her father's funeral. The lifeless princess looked down at her paper, for she was suffering from stress of a particular problem for Geometry… For she was still stressing over one little proof for Theorem 11-3! She cursed herself for being absolutely clueless with what she had to do. To reply to Samus question, she would only respond with a depressing note of self loathe.

"I can't figure out problem 8 on page 46…" Zelda says, and if this were an anime, Zelda would have waterfall tears running down her cheeks. Unfortunately, the Princess of Hyrule just appeared as if her brain had been removed from her head. Which meant that she was a lifeless doll when it came to writing her proof. The bounty hunter only raised her eyebrows, for had the Princess had not remembered about what the teacher said?

"Zelda, you don't have to get all the problems at once. The teacher said that you are allowed to skip a few problems, if you are having difficulty."

The Princess groaned heavily with fatigue. "But I don't want to move on until I get this one right! It has to be perfect!"

"…?"

The bounty hunter did not understand the Princess' will for perfection since she knew it was impossible for anyone to do. She, however, still watched the Princess keep on scribbling the words for a proof down, and erase furiously with her eraser, as the Princess was determined to get the problem right. Though, she was only creating more stress for herself and it was taking up most of her time. The bounty hunter only rolled her eyes and shook her head at the Princess for her stubborn attitude for being a perfectionist. It was common sense for anyone in modern day times; if one did not understand something they could always go back to it later and skip around the problems. Doing the easy problems first, while finishing off the difficult, last problems were what mathematicians do, not the inverse. The only thing that the Princess was able to accomplish through the whole exercise, was being able to get herself confused with everything she had been working with to the point where she wanted to cry out in frustration. Time had declared one thing, though. The Princess had wasted her whole time trying to solve one problem and making it "perfect" while the time was up.

* * *

The Geometry class had ended faster than what was expected from the Princess. Instead of finishing about the average of twelve problems, the Princess of Hyrule was only managed to complete four problems. Which was, of course, lesser than what she would have accomplished if she didn't get stuck on that specific problem. So for the poor, little princess, she would be struggling for quite a while in this wonderful little high school which was filled with many different mysteries. People hastily moved from one class to the next, as Zelda would have to be heading to the most wonderful science class of all time… Biology! To much of Zelda's enjoyment, she found the teacher, Mrs. Pierce, to be a wonderful, knowledgeable woman who had lots of experience when it came to teaching. An unusually short teacher, with her height ranking at four feet eleven, small oval glasses hanging on the bridge of her nose, and an interesting overalls styled dress that she wore for the first day of school. Despite the fact that Zelda was definitely pleased with the teacher, Samus was not with the class. At the sight of the all too familiar three swordsmen, the bounty hunter knew that she was going to be immediately disgusted with all of her classmates. Not only with the Marth, Roy, and Link, but also due to the fact that those dreadful wrenches… the MRL Fan Club's presidents… were taking the same course as her, Zelda, and Peach. 

Miss Aran's face cringed with such disgust, as all the females swarmed around the three swordsmen around the Biology lab. As a matter of fact, all the females were gathered around the swordsmen like disgusting fruit flies around a piece of rotten meat. That was not actually a bad comparison for the bounty hunter. Samus Aran could imagine the swordsmen as all pieces of rotten meat that attracted disgusting, little fruit flies. She continued to think that wonderful little metaphor, as a smug/evil/some kind of ominous look was upon her seemingly oh-so-innocent-young-girl's face! As Zelda had a puzzled look upon her face, along with several invisible question marks over her head, when she faced Samus and asked her if there was anything wrong.

"Oh no, Zelda. There's nothing wrong!" Samus somewhat sarcastically replied, as she gave a cheery smile. However, when Samus turned around she saw that horrible sight of females attacking the three popular, male students at the entrance of the classroom! A small flare sparked in her mind, and was now burning in rage. She faced the Princess of Hyrule once again, this time with a very overly scary look; it appeared as if she was back in her own past again…

"Actually, Zelda… NO! There is something wrong! Those _freaks_ over there are what is wrong!" Samus said, as she ended the last sentence by shooting her right pointer finger at the three swordsmen over to the doorway of the room.

The threesome was all still chatting away with their female classmates, except for Link. Almost all of the females in the room were busy flirting away, doing rather… inappropriate gestures, such as one girl stroking the front of Marth's chest, rather seductively. Of course, a flush of bright pink came to Marth's cheeks, but he was rather enjoying all of this attention. Roy was only trying to get the girls to calm down when talking to him, and was practically rejecting all the proposals for dates. When the red head saw all those watery eyes which were facing him, he tried his best to explain that he was not a homosexual and he was interested in girls, but just not ready for them yet. However, he was forced to answer the question of when he would EVER be ready and available to date a female, where he did not know the answer to that one. As for Link… he still remained quiet. Caitlin Russell was currently annoying the living Sacred Realm out of him by trying to flirt with him, by saying how attractive he was and how he was such a good student at school. However, a lot of forehead veins were appearing on the sides of Link's head as he tried his best to retain his anger. He was very tempted to snap at Caitlin for something, but he couldn't find an opening yet… He was still waiting for one.

"So are you worried about Biology class, Link? I heard from some of the upperclassmen that it's kind of hard. They said that Mrs. Pierce is a little bit harsh when it comes to grading…" Caitlin said in that "adorable" high voice of hers that she only used when she was around Link. Link's eyebrows immediately scrunched up in his brow as he faced her. This was his opening.

"If you are so worried about something, why tell me this? What do you expect me to say? I'm not your guidance counselor or therapist," Link replied to her in a very cold and placid way. Hoping to ruin her self confidence in herself, Caitlin only seemed to be a little bit shocked by his words. However, she didn't take those words to personally to herself, as she smiled sweetly at him.

"Well, I just want you to listen to what I have to say and open up a little bit," Caitlin told Link, in a softer tone, but nonetheless confident in herself.

"If you want me to listen, then go talk to a wall. I'm not going to listen to your whiney, stupid problems because they are always something you can do yourself. This is what I don't like about you females… You're always so weak. You just have to rely on someone or something else for your problems. You can't figure things out for yourself," Link stated slowly, as he started to take his seat just as class was starting.

Now, Caitlin Russell's was completely shattered. It was only then that she took those words that Link spoke, to be personal. Feeling defeated with her actions, she did not expect to hear more from Link. But there was more that needed to be told from Link to set the boundaries between him and her. He still had his back facing her, when he said his final words.

"Oh yeah… And one more thing. If you want me to open up… good luck with that. I don't plan to ever open up to anyone. I'm more complex than you think, Russell. If you think that you can get me to open up to you, by just communicating with me… You're wrong. No matter what, I'll never "open up" to anyone."

And the Hero of Time walked off, just like that, as if it what he had said or done was nothing. He did so, leaving the one of the most popular girls and one of the presidents in the MRL Fan Club to be in complete despair.

* * *

Biology class was basically more rambling of the rules for the classroom and what was expected out of them for work. Zelda's mind wandered around, as if she felt her mind was being fluttered away like a butterfly. She wished to sleep right now, however she knew she would have to bear with it. She only had one class to deal with now, which was World Geography. How she longed to go home and do many things when she got back to Hyrule! She wished to hopefully pass by Lon Lon Ranch, where perhaps she could find Malon at work, and discuss her about her day. Then, she would probably talk to Impa as soon as she returned home from the castle. She would relax with a nice hot cup of black tea, and finish those cursed, Geometry classroom problems which were due for homework since she didn't finish them. She had to admit that she was jealous of Samus for being able to finish all twelve problems in her given time limit. However, she realized that she just needed a little bit more practice with her problems and perhaps she would do a little better. Since she understood a little bit than before about how to apply the theorems, postulates, and collaries; she should have no problem with her homework tonight. 

Biology class finished, and Zelda was sure to say good bye to Samus and Peach. Samus replied by saying: "Laters," while they all packed up to head off to their next class.She approached the Geography classroom, as she kept on thinking about the whole deal between her mother and that guidebook that Samus had given her. Her feet were scraping the aluminum, shiny white tiles of the hallways, as she kept on thinking. She passed several azure colored lockers, as her head was still in deep thought. She held her books with her left arm, closely around her chest, and her fingers wrapped around her chin. Her head was once again in the clouds, as she bumped straight into someone again. A strong "umph" came from her and the person she bumped into. The exact same, overly popular male that she bumped into last time. But for this time, she was not late for her class. Thankfully, her books did not slip from her arm and scatter across the floor. But she was almost completely off balance when she stepped back from the shock and confusion of the person she was almost knocked over by. She did, however; receive a negative response from the teenager.

"What the fuck?! … Ugh. Watch. Where. You. Are. GOING!" the young man replied in the most infuriated tone in the world.

He glared down upon her as, Zelda's ultramarine eyes slowly shifted upwards to the young male she was facing. The whole hallway had stopped moving, as they all watched the Princess of Hyrule face the Hero of Time. The halls were completely silent up and down, and left and right. Every eye was fixed on both of the Hylians. No one had ever dared to knock themselves into Link, since he was part of the student council and had such power as one of the most popular boys in the school. And that was when Zelda realized who Link was. No, she had already heard all the rumors and the descriptions from Samus; however, this would be her first _real_ and _personal_ encounter with Link Wright. She helplessly glanced up at him, as she viewed one of the most handsome young male she had ever seen. Surely, enough there was everything that would be to say about him. His crystal, ice blue orbs in his sockets were filled with coldness and arrogance. His face had a nice bone structure to it, as he possessed very fine cheekbones and the prettiest face ever with his tanned skin. The two silver rings that pierced into each pointed ear, his broad, strong body, and his wonderful, majestic flowing blonde hair were all the qualities that made him… well, cool. Or maybe not just cool. Handsome… rock star like… pretty boy… and maybe even knightly like. Zelda was amazed. The Princess, in the first time of her life, was speechless. However, she had no idea what kind of man she would be dealing with when she had bumped into this complete stranger.

"I-I-I-…" Zelda began to say, as she was still staring at him, in complete wonder and shock.

"I-I-I-… WHAT?"

Link mimicked in Zelda's higher voice and his brows became deeply knitted in his brow. Zelda's impression of Link immediately popped like a bubble, as she found herself disgusted and loathing him right away from what he had just said. How could he say that to her? And more likely: How _dare_ he!? What had ever provoked him to say something similar to that! Who did he think he was? A person who could just stand there, thinking he was of higher authority than her. Someone who could just act like that in front of her was unforgivable. He already seemed to hold a grudge against her for nothing. That kind of behavior was unacceptable for the Princess. All she had done was simply and innocently knocked herself into him! There had been absolutely nothing that had ever sparked any sort of trouble between the two, if there had been, it was simply a misunderstanding. It was certainty unacceptable for him to mock her like that, as a woman of the name of "Princess". She frowned at him, for his cavalier behavior.

"I _apologize_," Zelda replied to him, in a colder tone of voice than what she would have normally used when apologizing to a man.

Link, the Hero of Time, glared at her with such disdain for the way the two words came out of her mouth. He fixed her with such a hardcore, piercing glare that he finally remembered that he bumped into this girl earlier. This young girl was the person whom Marth was pathetically flirting with in the beginning of the day. He recalled her being slightly pretty, but not that gorgeous. He was still observing for quite a bit, when he only took a few seconds to question what he was doing. She noticed there was some kind of cold look that she was returning to him, as he finally decided to shift his body around to leave. All of the students in the hallways were still watching them, as the Hero of Time was leaving to his next class. Before he was fully out of sight, there was a quick little note that Zelda made to Link.

"It's not my fault if no words come across my mind, when I bump into such a supercilious, young man."

Those sounds from her voice came across to him as if he was being shot in the back. His body completely froze, as all of the watching students' eyes were popping out of their sockets. They had never, in a million years, expected to hear anyone talk back at the Hero of Time like that. It was definitely not a wise decision. _"That idiot!"_ they all thought. How naïve and innocent was she? What a mess the Princess had gotten herself into! There was no way someone like Zelda could tell Link something similar to that. It didn't matter if she did have royalty in her blood, she should have known… That in Hyrule, she did have control over all the Hylians in the land, but in the Super Smash Brothers High School, Link was a prince. He was a prince of all the people of different races, unrelated time sections, separate worlds, and distant people. Link's mind flared up into fury, as he felt his anger being risen up like a stallion rearing up on its master. In less than a second, Zelda found herself in front of Link once again, this time; he was fuming with more rage than before. His ice, crystal eyes were once again penetrating her body and it felt as if she was paralyzed. However, once he did that, Zelda noticed something deep in his eyes that she would have never expect to find in him. She saw something that perhaps not even Marth or Roy had seen in him.

_A lost child…_

"Do you even _dare_ to try to start a fight with me?" His voice was hardened by all the rage inside of him. His eyes were cold with all the negative emotions in the world, yet there was a fire inside of each eye.

_A very lost child… _

"What makes you think that you are better than me? Huh?"

_Deep in the woods…_

"Answer me! Do you really think that you can just talk back to me like that!?" The Hero of Time was still furious with the Princess of Hyrule's behavior.

_Who did not know what was going on…_

"Well, do you plan on answering me or do you plan to fight me?"

_And who was still very… very… alone._

Zelda's voice flew back into throat as she was finally able to reply: "No, I do not wish to neither challenge you nor your anger in any such way."

Everyone in the school was practically still watching the scene between the Princess and the Hero, and they expected the same thing. They all thought Link would say more heartless, rough sentences to her. Surprisingly, he did not. Instead, he fixed his glare on her for a few more seconds, until he finally turned around and headed off to his class for good. The future Queen of Hyrule still watched him with an astounded mask on her face, as he kept on sauntering down the hallways. All the students in the Super Smash Brothers High School were still observing Link strolling down the hallways, until the Hero became irritated at what they were staring at. He clenched his teeth for a little bit, as his eyebrows were still deeply creased in his forehead. He turned to all the students on each side of the hallways and in front and behind him.

"What are you all staring at? Go back to whatever and wherever you were going to!" he shouted.

All of the students abruptly started shifting around and lively whispering to each other about what happened. Even though people had moved in front of her, Princess Zelda of Hyrule could still see the back of Link facing her. Though, it appeared that no one was noticing, but her, she noticed that there was some kind of hatred and mixed amount of emotions on his back that he was never able to wash off. She felt her knees become watery and unstable as she found herself plunging down on the floor, still in stupefaction and mute. The bounty hunter, who had watched the whole seen, along with the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom both hurried to the fallen Princess' side. The latter woman only was slowly stepping towards her, while the other one was practically dashing to her side. Samus started to quickly explain some things, she told Zelda that she should never try to ever do that again, while the other princess just stood there, watching Samus explain everything. However, Princess Zelda was not paying attention to a word that the famous bounty hunter was saying. She had her eyes still focused on Link, who was just about at the end of the hallway, departing to his next class…

* * *

World Geography was, as expected, nothing more than ramblings of what was expected and all the blah-di blah-di explanations of everything. Zelda's mind paid no attention what so ever, since there was no reason to listen to the teacher, Ms. Tran. Instead, she found her mind wandering, thinking about that boy. That boy named Link. As she found herself wondering about that boy, she started to ask herself. 

"_Why the Sacred Realm should I care about him? He has done nothing, but indirectly insulted me with his prideful behavior. Why should I even spare a second to think about him?"_

There was not even a single logical reason for why she found herself thinking about him. Her mind was just driving in circular paths, until she perhaps may have discovered a _small_, logical reason for why she was pondering over him. It was probably some kind of confusion or misunderstanding or something that was irrevocable in Link's heart that made him the way he acted. She was very unsure of it, but it didn't matter now. Class had already ended, while all of the students put up the blue chairs on the tables, and were lined up at the door. As Zelda's mind snapped back into place, she realized what she had to do, and quickly packed herself up. As she placed her chair on top of the table, she was still in deep though about everything today. The bell had already rung, while all of the students filed out the door as soon as possible. Zelda was still alone in the classroom, except for Ms. Tran, who was still cleaning up the classroom so she could leave as well.

When she took a small step outside the World Geography classroom, she found herself in an amidst of swarming students, like bees in their hives, working their asses off for something. She heard the sounds of paper shuffling, lively gossip, and the footsteps of her lone self, being absolutely lost and helpless. She was searching around for Samus and hopefully, Peach, whom might be anywhere, but it was no use. There were too many people in the hallways for Zelda to determine who Samus was and who Peach was with all of the people around her that had blonde hair and blue eyes. She gave a huge ass mushroom sigh (as in one of those white mushrooms in Japanese anime magically popped out of her mouth) and started to head to her locker. Zelda had just started to twist the knob of the lock on her locker, with the numbers flying in her head. Her combination was 4-30-15. The combination didn't work. She tried it again. 3-40-16. Oh wait… Wasn't that wrong though? 4… 30… 15? Zelda's mind was in a huge sea of confusion, as more and more invisible question marks magically appeared around her head.

"Oi! There you are, Zelda!" A husky, deep somewhat mixture of both feminine and masculine tone of voice to it called to her. As the future Queen of Hyrule spun around, to face the woman behind her, she discovered that Samus Aran was sauntering towards her. She grinned at her new friend, as she also noticed that Peach Toadstool was closely following behind her.

"Hello, Samus," Zelda replied, as Samus groaned.

"Dudette, that tone and the word you chose is just still too formal! You gotta loosen up a bit. I don't understand how you Hylians live like that! You guys are all… up tight and formal. Okay, maybe I'm just stereotyping you guys, since it's only you and Link attending this school, but still! You need to just… relax. Use more of a causal tone of voice rather than prissy pucker princess peeving popping posture of yours! … Whoah dudette! That was an alliteration that I just said now! Wow… I guess, Mr. Menin's how rant about teenagers needing to say more alliterations these days really stuck to me," Samus began to muse at herself, as Zelda just nodded her head even though she did not understand a word that the bounty hunter was saying. She finished fishing out her books, and was more than ready to leave the school for the day.

* * *

As the lovely, young threesome of ladies exited the buildings. Light was gloriously streaming down on all of their faces, for it was still summer and life seemed to be happier now that the first day was over. They were standing at the top of the concrete stairway, leading up to the high school as they had a perfect view of everyone departing for the day. Our wonderful, heroine/princess of the story stopped in her footsteps to discover all these different methods of transportation in front of her. Most of them were these… hunks of metal. Some of them made the most disturbing noises that she had ever head, while some had the most foul stench of order to them. The olfactory sense of gasoline tingled Zelda's nostrils in a way that she did not find to be pleasant at all. The skin on her face creased with detestation as she couldn't believe the people of other worlds and future used these types of transportation. Though, she was curious about all these different ways of how people from different worlds and times were able to withstand all of this. She was still fresh out of her world and time in Hyrule. 

Yes, the Princess of Hyrule was curious about a lot of things. For example, was Link from the same time as she was? If so, how come she had never heard of a boy in Hyrule Market who was rich enough to attend school here? All of these questions were stirring about like busy chipmunks (busy chipmunks, meaning similar to sexual intercourses) in her head. From her place at the top of the stairs, she gazed down at the MRL presidents to witness all of them crawling into this long, white automobile with black windows and horizontal lights in between each set of windows. What was that specific term for that type of car that Samus taught her again? Oh yeah, a limousine. According to the bounty hunter, those types of cars were only used by extremely rich people. So applying to her new knowledge of the other worlds and times, Zelda concluded that Megan Anderson, Rachael Livingston, and Caitlin Russell came from extremely wealthy families, like her. However, at least Zelda had a sense of morals, decency, ordinariness, and good virtues.

Princess Zelda of Hyrule was still in deep comparison of herself and the MRL presidents, as she descended from the stairs. In fact, she was in such deep thought, she didn't notice what Samus' ride was. She heard a huge vibration in the air and another roar. When she faced the direction of where Samus should be standing, saw that Samus was sitting on top… of… a completely hunk of metal and… an engine. A red lion, that had neither claws nor teeth, but a roar loud enough to scare away a lot of people. It sputtered out a lot of black smoke from its tail and Samus gripped the handles of her ride. Such a shock came to our darling, little princess as a huge exclamation in surprise came in front of her head. Samus had just finished putting the keys in place, as she was beginning to take place of her red helmet, when she noticed Zelda staring at her ride.

"Hey, Zelda! Do you like my ride?" Zelda said absolutely nothing, but was still staring at her ride.

"What do you think of my motorcycle? It's actually four years old, but I've managed to keep it in top shape!" Samus exclaimed, as she put her right hand on the back of her neck and gave Zelda a smile. The only things that Zelda could do were to slowly step in front of it, crouch down to her knees … and… poke it. Samus found herself in a fit of fury for some reason; for she wished that the Princess would say something more than to just poke her motorcycle.

"Hey! Don't poke my motorcycle! It has FEELINGS, you know?" Samus exclaimed in an overly protective way. Zelda lifted herself back into a normal standing position, when she fixed Samus with a lifted eyebrow.

"How can it have feelings? It's an object designed of metal. Objects of metal don't have feelings!" Zelda retorted slowly, in a not so furious manner, but more of confusion. To her reply, Samus only shifted her eyes from side to side for a bit, as she tried to conduct up an answer.

"… Just close your eyes, count to ten out loud, snap your fingers, hop on one foot for thirty seconds, and boom. The motorcycle shall end up with imaginary feelings!" Samus replied, as she wiggled her fingers in a super, spooky way. Zelda's infamous sweat drop appeared out of the side of her head, while an awkward silence followed behind it.

"… Erm…. Right. By the way, where's Peach? Did she already depart for home?" Zelda inquired to the bounty hunter, as Samus shook her head.

"Naw. I don't think she's gone. Oh wait! There she is! Did you want to talk to her about something? And girl! What did I tell you about talking more casually? People are going to take advantage and make fun of you if you don't start talking casually!" Samus began to ramble more about how Zelda should speak and act, though Zelda did not pay attention at all to Samus' words.

Her eyes scanned around outside of the school, as she saw some outcasts secretly smoking their cigarettes, some preps talking among each other about her whole "boob groping incident" with Megan, Prince Marth Lowell of Altea and Roy taking a carriage to Altea, and Link… Link was no where to be seen. She wondered where that boy went and how he left for home right now. When Zelda's eyes finally landed on Peach Toadstool, she saw the other Princess, still wearing that depressed look upon her face, with that emotional instability as well. Her feet where stuck together, side to side, with her backpack held in front of her, both of her hands on the top strap of her backpack. The other princess looked down at her feet, with her squeaky, clean black leather school shoes and her eyes wide with fear.

Zelda observed Peach a little bit more, and noticed that fragile, porcelain doll-like figure was still standing and scared of the world. A limousine pulled up at the drive way of the school, the chauffeur opened the door for Peach, and the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom dashed inside the car. For a moment though, Zelda caught sight of her face, as she saw small wet, diamonds streaming down her face, while she was slightly trembling all over. Her face was still filled with sorrow and despair. As soon as the other princess was in the other car, the limousine speeded off in a very abrupt manner, that it left Princess Zelda stunned to see that from Peach.

When Zelda spun around behind her to face Samus, she ended up watching the bounty hunter with her motorcycle helmet already strapped under her chin and waving at her good bye. Samus Aran revved up the engine of her motorcycle, and sped off with the roaring of the lion following down the street and in the air. Zelda blinked a few times in confusion, not knowing what on earth and in Hyrule should she do now! She had absolutely no idea how she was supposed to find her ride, and if she did even have one. Should she just stand there and wait for her ride to come, like all of the other students? Or should she perhaps should find a teacher and ask them if they could find some way to contact her father? She had forgotten everything Koji had told her earlier that morning about what she was supposed to do. Of course, her father wouldn't just allow her to stand there in this… futuristic city… all alone… with no money… and no food… or water… That would be just unbearable, outrageous, and not a possible action made by her father! There was a very serious, important matter she wished to know about. Which was everything about the Super Smash Brothers High School and everything about it. Why did her father want to send her to this particular school, anyways? As a matter of fact, she was so was wrapped up with what action she should take, when she didn't notice a familiar, royal blue carriage with golden outlining stop dead right in front of her. She was still pondering until she heard that familiar voice.

"Princess Zelda, do you wish to arrange a date with the night over here at the Super Smash Brothers High School?" Koji inquired to the young lady. Zelda lifted her head up, to see Koji seated in coachman's seat as he grinned down at her. The Princess of Hyrule went all starry eyed since she temporarily thought she was abandoned by her father or forgotten her.

"Koji! I'm saved!" Zelda exclaimed to herself, as she slowly stepped toward the Koji. Unfortunately for the Princess, as she slowly sauntered towards Koji and the carriage, she didn't notice the crack in the sidewalk and one of her feet caught in between the cracks, and she fell down flat down her face. As all the people in the high school thought: "What the hell is with her?", Zelda miraculously stood up all… not damaged in any physical way.

"Heh heh heh… Sorry about that," Zelda said all apologetic and awkward like.

Koji shook his head at the Princess, as he hopped down from his seat, and opened the carriage door for her. He gesticulated his left hand at her, to go on ahead, and sit down in the carriage, as Zelda followed. Koji closed the door for her, as he placed himself back on top of the carriage seat. With a crack of his whip, they were off back to Hyrule.

* * *

They were crossing through the cobbled stone streets, through many different stores and streets. Zelda was sure to pay very close attention to her surroundings, for she didn't at the start of the day and wished to know more about this placed called Nintendo City. She saw many different people, but what astounded her were… these… anthropomorphic creatures. She had seen a fox… that looked was about the shape of a human, and walked like a human. Yet was completely covered in fur, along with a tail and ears, while the fox was even wearing the same school uniform as her! By the looks of it, this fox was a female, due to her very pointed ears and feminine, vixen features and the female uniform she wore. Zelda poked her head out of the window of the carriage, to see Koji's face as he had all four, white horses stroll down the streets. 

However, he seemed to be not surprised at all. He was just driving the horses around, as he didn't appear to care about his surroundings at all. As if he had already been here several times before, and wasn't surprised. As she put herself back into her carriage seat, she crossed her arms and legs, and frowned deeply at this matter. She was still confused about how everyone seemed to be so calm and understanding about these facts about this strange, new world, when she did not understand any of it. She watched carefully though, by the time Koji reached the west border of Nintendo City, she was curious to know what would happen next. The high grey, stone walls of the border of Nintendo City looked like any ordinary, traditional type of gates from any city in her time and world.

"Pass, please," a guard asked. She had to admit though, this man dressed in modern day police clothing. Koji whipped out a slip of paper and showed it to the guard. After careful inspection, the police guard strode up to the carriage.

Zelda squeaked a little: "Eeek!" out of her mouth, as she worried that the police would do something harmful to her. Was the pass that Koji given him a mistake? Was it a fake!? Zelda's stomach turned around in somersaults as the guard faced her sternly at the window of the carriage.

"Welcome back to Hyrule, Princess Zelda," the guard told her, as he smiled and bowed down in front of her. Zelda gave a surprised look, for she was expecting more of a harsher treatment than what she had received.

"Hey, Charlie! Could you open up the gate for Princess Zelda, and teleport them back to Hyrule?" the guard shouted over to the other guard.

The other guard, however… seemed to be… in a… glass box with a lot of switches and buttons. The guard named Charlie nodded his head at the police guard, pressed a few buttons and switches, and the gate _slowly_ opened. Very slowly. As the gate opened, Zelda stared at the destination in front of her… and what was that? It was a swirling, mist of… colors. Most of it was grey, but in the middle of the swirls were the bright colors of blue, red, black, and… was that yellow? Anyways, the Princess was absolutely stunned to see this sort of thing in front of her. When she expected by teleporting Koji, her, and the lovely, white mares that pulled the carriage, she expected somewhere in Hyrule Field behind those gates or perhaps the Lost Woods. But not a weird, swirling mass of…what looked like nothingness! Zelda stared, with her eyes popping out of her sockets and her mouth hanging open like… a mouth hanging open! As Koji ordered the horses to move, Zelda still was in astonishment while the royal blue carriage proceeded to the teleport.

As they became closer to the teleport, Zelda could swear that spinning mass thingy started to swirl faster and faster. The Princess of Hyrule could feel herself shaking and found herself sweating for some reason. Perhaps she was just nervous about the whole thing about going back to Hyrule, or something. She wasn't sure, but she was still a little bit scared. There were several negative possibilities of what could happen when she crossed the portal back to Hyrule. For the best part, she just screwed her eyes shut and hoped for the best. She clutched a bit of her pleated skirt. Her heartbeat started to pummel out of her chest, while her hands were becoming stiff. As the carriage passed through back to Hyrule, she heard the oddest sound ever. It sounded like an: "eeeelllooooouuuuuuuuuuupppppp!" as the Hylians came back to their own world and time.

* * *

The carriage proceeded down in Hyrule field, on the dusty, dirt roads which connected the different parts of Hyrule. As Zelda stuck her head out of the carriage window, to see where the hell they came from in the teleport, she saw a huge wall of rocks and that… swirling teleport on it. What in the Sacred Realm did this mean? Better yet, why was a teleport randomly on some bunch of rocks west of Hyrule? This didn't make any sense to Zelda! As she properly seated herself back into a lady like position, she saw from outside the window, that it was still the same time of day back in Hyrule as it was in Nintendo City. Zelda frowned deeply on this matter, for she still did not understand this whole deal with everything in Nintendo City, the Super Smash Brothers High School, time compression, and other modern day things. It was as if this whole thing was a puzzle, and Zelda had only collected only a few pieces of the puzzle. Yet she wished to perhaps get a majority of the pieces from either her father or Impa. She was still thinking very deeply and gravely about this matter, until she noticed an upcoming, all-too-familiar ranch. Her eyes widened in happiness, and she smiled at herself, since she was eager to talk to her dear friend she could never forget about it. 

"Koji! Make a left right here!" Zelda shouted at the coach driver.

"Why?"

"Just make a left right now, or we'll miss where I wanted to go! Please? Do this for me! There's a very important person I wanted to see!"

Koji hesitatingly turned left, for he wondered what possibility the Princess could want by turning left. It wasn't until after a while, when he caught a familiar sight of that ranch, the one the Princess would always wish to visit when she was younger. Koji smiled, as he knew that the Princess would be always in great need to see her best friend in all of Hyrule. He headed up to Lon Lon Ranch, as Zelda relaxed a little bit to see Malon. All of these emotions of her first day of school had overwhelmed her, and she couldn't wait till she was able to let all of it out. She had so much to discuss with Malon, and she did not plan to leave out any detail of her day. She closed her eyes, as she tried to mediate for a little bit, to sort out everything in her mind. Zelda could stench of horse manure coming up to her noses, as most ranches would smell of, and the cries of the cuccos all freaking out whenever Mr. Ingo or Talon or even when Malon would pick them up. She knew all of these sounds and smells ever since she was little. Normally, all nobility in Hyrule would be disgusted by the ideas of how all the common folk and ranchers lived, however, Zelda found it to be refreshing. There was something about the simple life, where everything was carefree and happy. No rules, rank, authority of any sort. People could live as they wanted to. It wasn't until the carriage came to a full stop, when Zelda realized that they had arrived all the way to the entrance of the ranch.

"Why hello, Koji! What brings you and the lovely princess here?" Talon asked with a smile. Koji grinned back at Talon, for the coachman and the rancher were familiar with one another. Koji had indeed been bringing to Lon Lon Ranch ever since she was little, so he did know Talon and Mr. Ingo quite well.

"The Princess wished to see your daughter today, Talon. I just remembered this, but the King also wishes to have some more milk delivered to his castle. He wants to praise you again for the refreshing milk, which helps nourish all of the guards and nobles in the castle. I also have some things I need to catch up with you on, Talon. It's been a while since I last visited," Koji replied.

"Ah, I see. Well, Princess Zelda, you are more than welcome to step out of your carriage and talk with Malon. She's in the barn, sorting out hay, like Mr. Ingo told her to. I'm sure she'll be very surprised to see you. Anyways, have fun! I've got to talk with Koji now," Talon told Zelda at her carriage window.

The Princess of Hyrule smiled at Talon for his graciousness, and nodded her head. She was going to open the carriage door for herself, until Talon did so for her. She meekly smiled at rancher, for she was a little bit used to have been treated as a… well, commoner back at the Super Smash Brother High School. She stepped down from the carriage, and started to walk up north to where the barn laid. As she looked back to the two men of Hyrule, she saw that Koji and Talon were engaged in a conversation about the King's horses and the weekly delivery for the castle. She headed on, not caring that her shoes were getting muddy, until she saw Mr. Ingo heading out of the barn where he greeted her with a bow and a nod. Zelda felt the corners of her mouth pulling down, as she was once again disappointed with her title here. Even though, that little bastard named Link said all of those things to her as if he was of higher rank, she still found it to be better than as a princess. Why must people bow at her whenever she was to pass them? It as if she couldn't take a proper stroll in the fields, without having a bow or a greeting at her with the title as "Princess". When she reached the barn, she noticed that the door of the barn was open. She smirked at herself, because she wished to surprise her friend. She peeked in, to see the redhead with the pitchfork standing straight up in front of her. The ranch girl used the pitchfork as somewhat of a staff, as she had herself leaning forward in exhaustion.

"Aw… I have so much work to do now… Why did Mr. Ingo have to make me work some more? He tells me to move some hay to one place, and then another. What the Nayru's name is his problem?" Malon asked herself out loud. She picked up pitchfork and started to properly move the bales of hay from left to the right side of her. Zelda was very grateful for those Sheikah lessons she had acquired from Impa, while she tip toed herself in her until she was close behind Malon. When she got closer, she jumped on the redhead from behind, and practically hugged her.

"Gotcha!" Zelda exclaimed as she tightly hugged Malon. Malon, of course, gave a little jump for she felt as if her pants had been scared off… if she had any pants. For one does not have pants if she is wearing a dress. As Zelda leapt off from her best friend, and as soon as Malon turned around, the ranch girl's face lit up in happiness.

"Zelda! What are you doing here? I thought you would be by home now, since it was… well, the first day of school for you and such. And my Goddesses! Look at the way you dress! Is that the way the students dress at the school!" Malon exclaimed. Zelda let out a little laugh, as she pushed her blonde hair out of her way.

"I figured I could spend a little time over here, and talk with you about some things. Oh my Goddesses, Malon! I have SO much to tell you right now."

The future Queen of Hyrule went off like a bullet, and started to chatter away about the day she had at the high school. There had been so much to tell her dear friend about this strange, new school. The rules, teachers, people, and basically everything. She would not waste a single breath about all these little, significant facts about her day. At times, Malon's eyes would widen in astonishment about all the details about the school, and then other times her face would cringe at disgust about all the details of the MRL Fan Club, and an eyebrow would be cocked at the incident when Marth tried to flirt with her. When she was finally done explaining all of this to Malon, the flaming haired girl only closed her eyes and exhaled deeply.

"… Wow. I do not know what to say now, Zelda. I mean… just… all of it is hard information for me to swallow. So you are saying that this school is from a different world and time?" Malon questioned, as Zelda nodded her head. "Oh my Goddesses. That's… just… wow. I do not know what to say anymore, Zelda."

"I know! That's what I was thinking as well. I didn't think that my father would ever send me off to a school where, all these… different people would come together in this type of place!" Zelda told Malon.

"Zelda," Malon started to say. Zelda looked at Malon in the eye as she noticed something in her eye, which was not there before.

"What?"

"You've changed the way you talked…"

"Oh… I'm sorry. I mean! I apologize. I did not mean to give you the impression that I am no longer the Princess that you once knew," Zelda corrected herself. Perhaps she took that advice Samus had given her to be a little bit too seriously. She should have known anyways though. She would be living two different worlds here. One would be a princess with strict rules and another would be more of a carefree, modern life with no boundaries on the path which lay in front of her. Malon, however, shook her head and smiled at her princess friend.

"Mmm. No, it's alright. I was just making a note on that. Don't worry, Zelda, I do not care if you were to speak like a commoner in that modern world which you mentioned. I was more than happy to see a more relaxed, calm princess with that manner and speech of yours. However, it would be worth mentioning to you, in case your father would be displeased," Malon told Zelda, as she softly smiled at her. Zelda smiled back at her friend, for knowing that she would always have support from her.

"Thank you, Malon."

"Hmmm… Those females in that MRL Fan Club do not sound like friendly people. I would advise you to stay away from them, for the sake of your status there. However, do not pay any attention to what they speak of you, Zelda. Your new friend, Samus, was right to say that as well. But one peculiar thing did strike me though. That boy you mentioned… that one who acted with a very rude and arrogant manner. What was he named again?"

"Oh, him? His name was Link."

"Link… Link who?" Malon asked.

"Link… I don't remember," Zelda replied, as she stood there, pondering about the ideas of why she couldn't remember his name.

"Strange, because I swore that perhaps… a few years ago, a boy wearing all green came to this ranch. His name was also Link as well. He came here to purchase one of the finest horses here at our ranch, Epona. Though he was nothing as you described him as. Instead, he appeared to be… soft, kind, and easy going. What were his physical features like?" Malon inquired to her princess. In the best way possible, Zelda described all the physical features of Link. After a long while, Malon frowned deeply at the description.

"That does indeed sound a lot like Link. Perhaps it is. I haven't seen him in years, since that was the only time he ever laid a foot in this ranch. No, it must be. I don't think there would be any other Hyrulean here that would go by the name of Link," Malon explained to Zelda.

"Well, he's certainty a young Hylian with the need of manners. I mean, seriously! If he were rich enough to attend this school, he could at least afford some manners!" Zelda exclaimed.

"Aw, it seems as if you take a certain fancy towards him, Zelda!" Malon commented to the Princess, as Zelda fell into a state of objection.

"Of course not! Why would I ever fall for a man with such… supercilious, prideful, arrogant, dominant, and effeminate looks? He's such a… cold hearted bastard that does not deserve to even bear a name of our race! One would think he's a Gerudo with that sort of attitude, rather than a noble, bold Hylian!" Zelda told Malon, as Malon sweat dropped on the side of her head.

"Well, you have mentioned him and his name quite a bit. However, I believe that, perhaps he has a reason for the way he acts. Most people are not born with those sorts of qualities. They gain them in some way or another through life. You also mentioned there was something in his eyes that were something tragic," the ranch girl mentioned.

"The only reason why I speak of him frequently today is because I'm still irritated at his behavior and the way he treats other people. He has completely gone against the Hyrulean's Golden Rule of: treat others the way they wish to be treated. Hmm… and yes. He did have something in his eyes, which were… odd. I admit that, maybe they do have something to do with his behavior. No matter what though, he should never, ever treat a lady, let alone a princess, like that," Zelda declared. Malon sighed deeply and shook her head.

"Oh, Zellie. You are so stubborn with what you believe in. Give it some time. But that's what makes you so adorable as a princess… Perhaps, one day… he'll change. Then he can sweep you off your feet, impress your father, and win the hearts of everyone in the land!" the red haired woman said to Princess Zelda, as she laughed heartily.

"Frankly, my dear, I do not expect any sort of changes, similar what to you said, to ever happen. So do tell me, what are you doing now?"

"Oh, well… Mr. Ingo told me to move some bales of hay for the horses."

"Oooh! Would you mind if I helped you with that?" Zelda asked, as she was more than happy to give her friend a helping hand.

"If you really wish to. It may be a little bit of hard work, since these bales are heavy. But if you think you can handle it, you may do as you please. There's a pitchfork, over there on the wall. No, not there, Zelda, over there to my right. Yep, alright. You can start to help me now!" Malon told Zelda, as the two friends grinned at each other. The blonde and the red haired girl started to work, until each bale of hay was on the other side of the room.

* * *

"Well, thanks for your hard work, Zelda!" Malon exclaimed to the Princess of Hyrule, as she hugged her. 

The Princess held her friend back at the entrance of Lon Long Ranch. The crimson sun was setting deep in the west, and the golden beams of light were shining down on the two friends. Talon and Koji were both watching the two young women with gleaming faces, as they smiled at them for their friendship. It was already late, and Zelda's father had already expected her to be home by now. However, Zelda didn't care. She could care less about the ideas of her father as the King of Hyrule and herself as the Princess. She wished to not head back to the castle, where she was greatly reminded of the title she would someday have to take up. Before she entered the carriage, she spoke to Malon.

"I'll be sure to drop by here tomorrow." Malon nodded her head, as she still smiled at her friend.

Zelda was sure to smile back, as she lifted her hand and waved good bye to both Talon and Malon. The ranchers waved back, along with Mr. Ingo who had exited from one barn to enter another. Zelda bit the side of her lip, as she painfully waved at them once again. She always hated leaving Lon Lon Ranch. It was something painful to her, to know that sometimes, she had to roll back into reality with her title as Princess. When they fully exited the ranch, and where back on the dirt roads of Hyrule Field, Zelda tried her best to relax. She closed her eyes again, and tried to take deep breaths. She wanted to release all the tensions inside her, before she returned back to the castle. As the carriage crossed the bridge to Hyrule's Market, Zelda opened one eye and watched Koji discuss some topics about the King with the guards. She closed her eyes one more time, as she felt the carriage moving up and down the cobble stoned streets. After they entered the gate of Hyrule Castle, Koji stopped the carriage in front of the doors of the castle. Zelda opened both of her eyes, as the coachman opened the door for her. She gathered up her belongings from school, and exited from the carriage. As two other guards pulled the handles of the door for her, Zelda was surprised to see her father pacing back and forth the main waiting room for the guests of Hyrule. The guards had closed the door behind her; Zelda's father looked up from his feet and at Zelda's face.

"Zelda! Where were you all this time? I was worried sick, when I noticed that you didn't arrive here as soon as I thought." Richard Harkinian embraced his daughter, as Zelda hesitantly returned the embrace. There were so many different things she demanded to know right now about this school, time, and world.

"I stopped by Lon Lon Ranch to pay a visit to Malon," Zelda explained to the King.

"Oh, yes. How is Talon, by the way? I haven't seen either his daughter or him for a long time. Work has been tying up most of my time and brain to visit them," the King of Hyrule commented, as Zelda faced her father sternly.

"They are both very well off." She paused for a bit, as she prepared herself for her next question.

"Father, I have some very important questions I must ask you," Zelda told him. She immediately grabbed the side of her backpack, unzipped it, and grabbed a book with her right hand. She thrusted the book at his face, as he saw the familiar name of his beloved wife. He only took the book out of Zelda's hand, stared at the book cover for a long time, and did not say anything. Zelda zipped her backpack shut, as she faced him with that stern, serious look on her face.

"I demand to know why my mother's name is written on the cover of that book. Why did you wish to send me off to this specific school, father? Did my mother write that book? Why didn't you tell me about this matter of time compression? Why would you wish to send me to a sort of school where the children do not care for education and more of the social life there? Why? I wish to know all of the answers to what I questioned you just now," Zelda reported to her father. The King of Hyrule lowered the book from his eyes, as his eyes met his daughter. For a long while, he did not say anything. His face cracked to a smile, and finally, a ruckus laugh till tears sprung out of his eyes. Zelda only lifted an eyebrow at her father's strange reaction to what she had just said. When he finally stopped laughing, he wiped the tears away, and answered her question.

"Well, I have noticed the way you talk has changed. It's more of a causal tone, compared to that uptight, proper way you always talk. I'm glad that you've been able to come this far, with everything about Nintendo City, time compression, and the Super Smash Brothers High School. Everything I wished for you is being taken into place."

"You are avoiding my questioning, father. Why?" Zelda inquired. She still wished to hear a direct answer. She was already eager to listen to his answer about this. It was not that she hated the new school she was in, but she was curious about everything.

"Hmm… I can't say now, Zelda dear. It's late. You need to eat supper, wash up, and go to bed," Richard Harkinian instructed her.

"But father! I want you to answer my questions, now! I have been waiting all day for these answers, and yet you wish to leave me hanging on your answers?" Zelda cried out to her father, in a muddle of emotions. She was frustrated, confused, angry, impatient, and yet even excited to learn the answers to everything in her mind. How could he just leave her now and refuse to answer a single question?

"You are still too young to know all the answers to your questions. Some of the questions you could even answer yourself. Not now though. It's still too early. You will learn when the time is right. You need to find the answers yourself though. When you are someday ready, you shall face me and answer those questions for yourself. It's best you call it a day, and allow yourself to rest. I promise that someday I shall answer your questions. For now, hand me all of those forms your teachers must have piled on you," he responded.

He extended his left hand out to his daughter for her to transfer the forms onto him. Zelda tentatively gave him the forms from her backpack, as she was still confused. How could she answer all of those questions by herself? Only time would tell. Only time could tell about this mystery of all these different worlds and times. She reluctantly faced the side to her right down at the white, marble floors of the castle, as she seriously addressed these matters. She was beginning to see it though. All these reasons about why her father wishing her to attend this specific school. She would continue to discover all these answers on her own, for she was still very young in her mind. However, she would discover more and more than she had ever hoped for during this year. It would have been something that her father would have next expected in the beginning of the year. Her father would have received more than he bargained for when he paid for the entrance tuition of the school a few weeks ago. Princess Zelda Harkinian of Hyrule would discover a new thought, feeling for a person through this whole year, whom would be sure to have her experience a new wave and rollercoaster of emotions.

* * *

**For the sake of one of my writer friends, please go read ****Every Shard of My Heart Belongs to Thee**** by Berlin's Brown Eyes for Zelink goodness and review for her! **

**Love, **

**-BKP**


	7. Amaranthine

**Bleh… I'm such a Facebook whore. Xx **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters in Super Smash Brothers, and nor will I ever will. However, I do own this story, so people who read this should just back off. If any Super Smash Brothers fan fic has a plot similar to mine, you shall be warned by me. And if no action is taken, I shall report to the admins.**

* * *

"**Wear your learning, like your watch, in a private pocket. – Do not pull it out merely to show that you have one. – If asked what time it is, tell it; but do not proclaim it hourly and unasked like the watchman." – Phillip Dormer Stanhope Chesterfield.**

**Chapter 7 – Amaranthine**

Before she knew it, Zelda Harkinian found herself slowly adapting to her new environment. She was able to get used to the different days of the week, where the order of her classes changed and was switched around. All of her teachers were likeable and seemed to be lenient with grading and were very experienced, much to Zelda's enjoyment. Her manner of speech was surely, but slowly changing to a more causal and modern tone. However, there were still a few incidents where she spoke formally as a normal princess should. By the time she fully fitted in the school's surroundings, she was in a position where she was neither popular nor an outcast. To be honest, that was the way she preferred it. If she was popular, she'd have to worry about all of those little, itty bitty insignificant details concerning her looks. She had already been offered the position for popularity, and she declined it. Besides, living freely as someone who was neither popular nor an outcast was better than any of those other stereotypes. She found herself enjoying the company of both Samus and Peach.

For the next two days of school, however, Peach did not show up. It was a great wonder and curious action for the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom to attend only the first day of school, and not show up for the rest of the week. The other blonde princess would muse at herself for all the possibilities for why Peach would not attend school. Perhaps she was sick with some kind of strange new illness, or maybe she had some kind of special appointments for her title as royalty. However, each answer that Zelda came up with was not a possibility of why Peach skipped school. As she had seen the other day, Peach had been crying as soon as school was over. Though she wondered why, maybe it was because that Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom was an amaranthine gardenia of a young lady. She definitely seemed to be that way. She kept on missing school, and by the time Peach did come back to school; everything being learned was so hard to keep up with for the other princess. Peach always remained quiet and still as if she was a mouse being cornered by a cat, even when she came back to school. When concerning Samus about this little issue, she said:

"Ah, don't worry about it yet. I'm sure she's still taking her time to _recover_."

"Recover? What do you exactly mean by that?" Zelda asked skeptically.

As Samus was going to answer her question, Mrs. Zimmer told the whole class to start working on their classroom problems. Samus quickly muttered to her that she would explain later. The thing was that Samus never did even explain to her about the reasons about Peach. It didn't matter for now though. Zelda found herself in a huge turmoil of stress with all the work. Seriously, how much could one teacher assign them? There would always be an essay here, a huge project worth one-fourth of their grade appearing next Wednesday, or a test which needed a four hour study on the material or just a pile of worksheets and problems. It felt as if invisible monkeys were attached to the students' backs, arms, and legs and wouldn't shake off unless they completed all of their work. Though, even if they completed their work, those "invisible monkeys of stress" would never declutch themselves from the students, for they feared the grades they would later receive. Most of the students, like Marth and Samus, would procrastinate.

Samus would always be sure to put everything else at the last minute. But how could she find time to do her homework as soon as possible? She had to work two part time jobs, so she wouldn't lose her apartment or she wouldn't starve herself to death or anything seriously like that. It was also because she needed money to pay for her own college fees. In truth though, Samus already had plenty for money for her to live on her own. The only problem was that the money was not hers. All of it belonged to a very special man in her life, who helped her off the ground when she was in darkness. No, he wasn't just special. He was her savior. And she remembered the way she fell for him…

However, she wished to not heavily rely on that man for everything she did in life. It was a promise she made to herself. For Marth, he was sure to procrastinate because he always thrived to have fun. Fun was one of the things that Marth had always looked forward into doing. So whenever he and Roy were the carriage, he was always sure to bug Roy, while Roy always tried to read whatever literary object in his hands. Prince Marth Lowell of Altea always believed in freedom and carefree lives. He was more than well aware of knowing how to make the best out of it in life. That was the way he always wished to live life. Even though he was Prince of Altea, all of his advisors would tell him to act his age and to become more responsible. However, the prince never listened. This is why perhaps Marth of Altea always remained a mystery to the elders. He would never listen to anyone, but perhaps the younger generation who understood the position he was in. Maybe it was perhaps he wanted to be something else than what he already was.

As for someone like Roy, he was sure to have all the materials drilled in his head. Procrastination was not an option for him. For people who lived in the past, they all completely aware of the fact the subjects and courses would be more challenging compared to the ones they had at home. Everything was so modern and with all of this new knowledge of another world was difficult to balance at once. People like Roy, Marth, Link, and Zelda were all people who were forced to balance their lives in the past and their lives in the present. Though, Roy was different. The talented, flamed haired swordsman had a title to live up to, as being Master Lord for Marth, once crowned as King. His father, Eliwood, would be sure to push him to his limits for the sake of Altea and for his own good as his promotion as a Master Lord. He would serve as Marth's right hand man, and become the most reliable warrior for him. Of course, Roy didn't care that much for the idea for serving for his best friend; however, sometimes it was too much for him to handle. He didn't show it, but it was becoming too much. It was as if all of this education of science, mathematics, geography, and languages had to be drilled in his head. He felt as if he were to miss only one question with whatever he did, his life would be over. If he were to ever become an unsuccessful person, he feared what his life would be like. He would not be able to take up his sword and serve Marth with honor and pride. He would fail everyone around him.

For the next three weeks of her new high school, Zelda was sure to try to stay on top of things. Her father told her, that she would have proved herself worth as an intelligent being at the SSB High School, and if she failed even once, her reputation would be over. It was worth it though. She was able to receive good grades on about every assignment, except she was slightly worried in her fields of Biology and Geometry, considering the fact she was not particularly talented at the masculine subjects. She would take her place as Queen someday, but either way, she would always be herself. As her Impa told her, what makes a princess a well driven princess is one is dedicated to her work and her surroundings around her. Though, the only problem with the Princess Zelda of Hyrule was her perfectionist problem, as she still had those horrid lessons from her old tutors of the idea of "perfection" for every princess.

* * *

"Dance tickets! Get your dance tickets RIGHT NOW! Come on, people! You all know you wanna party after three weeks of school already! And dancing is all the way to go to get all of that stress from your mind! If you pre buy your tickets, they only cost ¥ 2,500! If you are going to purchase your ticket at the door, they cost ¥ 4,000! Get your Homecoming Dance tickets right now," a senior called to all of the students of the SSB High School. "Be also sure to vote for your Homecoming King and Queen next Friday!"

It was Wednesday and a table was set up right against the wall of the east side of the cafeteria, while three seniors of the high school were seated right behind the table. In front of them was a cash box made out of really cheap tin, which stored all of their earnings for the day. All of the seniors had stacks of pre buy tickets in front of them, while a line of people were signing up to pre buy their tickets for the dance. As Samus and Zelda entered the lunch room, both engaged in a conversation of Ms. Tran's skimpy, little outfit while teaching, Zelda noticed this announcement to the whole school. She looked around, to see that Megan Anderson was already first in line to buy her ticket. She appeared to be pretty eager to be receiving her ticket, for she wished by at all costs, to be crowned Homecoming Queen. As soon as the bounty hunter and the Princess of Hyrule passed by the pre admission table, Zelda faced Samus.

"Samus, what is a 'Homecoming Dance'?" Zelda's mind was a storm of confusion, as Samus faced her to explain to her what it was.

"It's a huge social event where… you know… people dance. I'm sure that you have had balls or something back in Hyrule. Well, yeah. We call what you'd consider to be a "ball" a "dance". People dress up and get pretty carried away with it. Normally, Homecoming is supposed to be a formal dance, but considering the fact that our school deals with time compression… erm, some kids are allowed to dress… informal. If they wish. Most people dress formally. Don't worry about the music they play there. I know that they'll definitely play some waltzing music or something so that you can dance to. If you're going to go, just make sure you don't dress too formally like you would back in Hyrule," Samus commented.

Zelda pondered for a moment, as she was deeply interested in the idea of attending this… Homecoming thing-a-ma-bob. From what Samus described, it seemed to be a pretty good idea. Social events were what the Princess needed to get her mind off stress from school. There was also that hopeful thinking for whereas she would be able to find someone new, and perhaps be involved with some kind of relationship. Back in Hyrule, balls were very formal and dealt with older men and women, whom would all ask her mind bottling questions about Hyrule and its monarchy. As a matter of fact, most balls that Zelda had attended back home never had anyone of her age. This would be a wonderful opportunity for her to go out, be acquainted with people who were at the same age range, and just have fun. Though the ideas of her seeking the King's permission and purchasing both a ticket and a modern style dress, struck her. She would need some kind of companion to go out shopping with her and figure out a decent dress for her to wear, without looking too overly the top or too inappropriate.

"Hey, Samus. Do you mind if-" Zelda began to say, as she turned on her heel to face Samus.

Just when she thought that Samus was right behind her, she discovered that Samus had completely left her side and was in line waiting for pre-buying a ticket. The Princess frowned slightly and also was confused, for she never, in a million years (or perhaps a billion) expected to see Samus wishing to buy a ticket… for the Homecoming Dance. The bounty hunter never seemed to be the outgoing, social type of person who would wish to go off to a dance. Let alone, she also didn't seem to be the sort of person who would enjoy the idea of dancing and dressing up, since she seemed to live life in such… well, simplicity. She was obviously stunned, so for now, the Princess decided it would be best to seat herself at the lunch table with Peach, while she waited for her to discuss this matter.

"Heya!" Samus exclaimed, as soon as she received her ticket.

Zelda took note of the red envelope the bounty hunter was holding in her hands, as she bubbly sat down in her chair across from her. An eyebrow lifted from the normal spot on her forehead, for Samus had a quirky appearance on her face. She happily clutched her ticket in front of her while saying something similar to: "Squee!". When Zelda faced to her right, Peach still appeared to be terrified as well as cautious of her surroundings. Though, she seemed to look different today. She seemed more cautious and more petrified than she normally was. Why was this though? Was it because of the idea of the dance sickened her? Zelda was frustrated at herself and with Peach with why she was this way. Several times in fact, the Princess of Hyrule cornered the other Princess when she was alone in the hallways. She told Peach that if there was any trouble that was going on, she could tell her. However, Peach said nothing, but just walked off to class. No matter what kind of solace Zelda tried to give to the other Princess, Peach seemed to never take it.

"Dudette! Do you plan on going to Homecoming?" Samus queried.

"I have not made any arrangements for attending this dance," Zelda replied, as Samus gave an irritated groan. "I need to ask for my father's permission for this type of event."

"Argh! What did I tell you about speaking causally? You should just say: "I don't know yet" rather than that whole little, long wordy sentence there! Honestly! People will make fun of you or something if you keep that up. They'll start to think you are cold, or uptight or something like that. You don't want people to get the wrong impression of you, ya know?"

"Erm… Right. I'll try to sound more… modern."

"That's better! Now my ears can get used to that regular, everyday language rather than all that formal stuff you use," Samus told her with a smile. Zelda returned that grin with one of her own.

"Anyways, I wouldn't think you want to go to this dance. It seems a bit... feminine for someone like you to go to a dance," Zelda commented to the bounty hunter.

"Eh? Oh, you mean me going to the dance? Heh… Yeah, being the antisocial person that I am, I would normally never want to go to this sort of social thing," the bounty hunter admitted to the Princess, as she paused for a moment. "But there's a specific man I need to get over, so that I can finally move on…"

Samus reminisced for a moment about that specific man once in her life, as a fond look appeared on her face. She glanced down at the red envelope in front of her hands, as a lot of wonderful memories were streaming through her head. The dance would hopefully prove to be a great social event, for her to forget about things and enjoy her single life. There were many different things that Miss Aran needed to shove out of her mind, and fill it with some kind of new tenderness and feeling. Zelda tilted her head to the right side, as she was completely confused by what Samus had just said. Her voice had faded away from her little manner of speech, and Zelda was curious to know more about what she was implying by her words. There was something hallow inside of her voice when she broke off those words, as if there was something missing in Samus' past that Zelda failed to know.

"Erm, what do you exactly mean by that?" she asked. The other blonde girl's face released the appearance of deep thought, and back to her normal self as she brightly grinned at the Princess.

"Oh, it's nothing! Anyways, like I said… You should absolutely come to the dance with me. It will be fun! And Peach! You should come along too! … Aren't you going to say anything? Why aren't any of you guys saying anything?!? Come on! You know it will be fun! What do you say, Zelda?"

"Erm… Well, I'm still not sure. I need my father's permission, and… I don't have a dress for the occasion, so erm… yeah. I may not be able to go," Zelda explained to Samus.

"Hmmm… Well, if your dad says it's alright, I'll go shopping with you to pick out a dress for you. Now notice, that I didn't say dress shopping for the both of us, there is absolutely NO WAY I'm _ever_ wearing a dress to that Homecoming Dance!" Samus exclaimed.

Zelda nodded her head, as Miss Samus Aran started to go off on another ramble about why she would never wear dresses in a million years. Though, Zelda was only slightly paying attention to what Samus was saying. It wasn't that she was bored or sick of hearing Samus rant about weird, little topics like dresses, it was more of the fact that she was still confused with whether or not she should attend. Even though it appeared that she had made up her mind, it turns out she was still uncertain with all the little facts about what she was going to do for the dance. If she did attend, would Koji drive her there? What happened if she was stuck in the city or something due to an emergency? All of these worries and possibilities of her not attending would be horrifying and embarrassing for Zelda. The idea of not going was starting to strike her, as she realized that no man would be there to escort her to the dance. What in Din's name would she do about that little dilemma? That would bring complete embarrassment to her, to expect to dance without even a dance partner to dance with? And… wait. What did Samus just say? Oh yes, Samus mentioned something about that she'll have the time of her life even though she is going to be dancing in pants and by herself… Wait, what?!? Zelda needed some serious explaining here to be done about the Homecoming Dance. The Princess immediately started to buzz off some questions about the dance, as Samus gladly answered them.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the center of the lunchroom, Link, Marth, and Roy were busying among themselves. Busy as in the MRL Fan Club's definition of Marth chatting away to both Roy and Link, while they weren't responding to a word he was saying. Link was bluntly just nibbling away at his apple, while taking a sip of his bottle of milk (specially imported from Lon Lon Ranch!). Roy was balancing his studying for the World Geography's map quiz on Nintendo City and having Marth's words come through one ear of his head and out the other. He must focus. If he lost his concentration, he would be doomed for World Geography and end up in the forest with Link in his underwear. The both of them lived of white monkeys that showed them around the forest, while they helplessly became lost due to turtles, and they would be both living off monkeys and turtles. Wait, that didn't make any sense for Roy's future for the World Geography map quiz! It didn't matter to Roy anymore, for the red haired swordsman was too busy just trying to listen to Marth and study at the same time. Marth lively bantered away as he was talking about what every one in the cafeteria was probably discussing about: the dance.

"So, anyways. Guys. Do you plan to ask any chicks out to the dance? I'm thinking about hitting on Mariam, since she's kind of cute for a little Muslim, Indian chick. Maybe I should reconsider though. Her parents might go all psycho on her, if they knew that she had a date. I might go for her friend… That Asian art freak-girl who has layered hair. Wait… I think Falco mentioned that she asked a guy to go with her and he said yes. So she's taken. Or perhaps I should try that Nigerian kid that does choir? Yeah… She's pretty. Or maybe not. I think she also may have a date. Ah, maybe that girl over there. That African American music-lover babe. Hmmm… but damn. I think she told me that she's not going to Homecoming. Oh! Perhaps that Southern girl with dirty, blonde hair named Chelsea, you know? Hmmmm…. Eh. Maybe not. Now that I look at her again, she doesn't seem to be my type," Marth pondered to himself.

He looked down on this long, thin slip of paper with a black Sharpie in his hand, as he started to cross off some female's names. As a matter of fact, the list was so long that it extended all the way down to the floor, curling up at the ends. There was a huge list of girls that lay in front of his lunch tray, which he had to determine whom he was going to take to the dance. He chewed on the top cap of the Sharpie, which placed on top of the top part of the Sharpie pen, as he tried his best to figure out who the hell he should ask to the dance. He already crossed out the five girls names that he mentioned above, as his eyes faced up at the ceiling, for he was in deep thought. This should be a big decision for Marth, and indeed he was treating this as if it was a big decision. Normally, if no fan club of him and his friends existed, there would be less pressure for him to choose a girl to go to the dance with. However, Marth Lowell was completely aware of the fact he absolutely could NOT (and this is emphasized with a capital "not" to show how much Marth did not wish for this to happen) ask a girl from the MRL Fan Club to go to Homecoming with him. Why? It was all a matter of three simple, yet logical reasons:

1. This would be proven as some sort of "holy matter of occasion" that Marth happened to ask any random girl from the MRL Fan Club. It would also prove the fact that all the girls in the MRL Fan Club would have a chance with the Prince of Altea, when they didn't. Even though he strived for the attention, Marth knew better than anyone that none of those girls had a chance with him.

2. This would result in Megan Anderson confronting him or any other girl in the club, demanding to know why she wasn't asked for him. It would create utter chaos for all of the females in the MRL Fan Club and all the females in the school. Resulting in cat fights, along with the females somehow bringing in their grandfather's man-bras into this matter.

3. Marth did not find any of those girls to be appealing. Sure, many of them were physically good looking, however, the talented, blue swordsman wished for something deeper than them. Of course, he loved to play around with females. He wanted to find a girl who was just right for him. He wanted them to be able to answer the question: "What is life?" without having the answer of "clothes, make up, shoes, and accessories!"

Yes, those were all the logical reasons for why Marth would never wish to ask any of those girls out to the Homecoming Dance with him. Those reasons also applied for Roy and Link, however Roy simply was not that interested in girls yet. Well, perhaps he was, however, this one girl who was invisible. It was a very irrational thing, but that was how the world worked. Link did not have any particular interest any females at the moment. For he was still so bitter and pessimistic about what happened seven years ago, that fateful day where something precious was stolen from him. Even though things were restored to the way it had been, a part of him was clinging on to that piece of fear he experienced all of those years ago. He saw children dashing around, searching for something which needed to be restored. Life all around him was in panic and frustration. He remembered that feeling of bugs of fear crawling up inside his skin, sending him that shivering sensation of loneliness. Link's mind was in a slice of horror of memories, when Marth spoke to him.

"Link, who are you going to take to the dance?"

Link faced his azure hair colored friend, as he raised an eyebrow. What in Hyrule's name did his friend mean by that sort of thing? The answer had been obvious him from the beginning of the year. There was no one in Link's mind that he had planned to ever take to a dance, let alone fall in love. He felt his muscles in his body sink down back in to a normal, ground level position as he answered the Prince of Altea's question.

"No, Marth. There is no one who I plan to take to the dance," Link replied sourly.

"Hmmm… What about you, Roy? Do you plan to take any pretty ladies to the dance? Ooh! I know, if I snag two chicks, I'll be sure to lend you one to the dance!" Marth commented. Roy hesitatingly nodded his head, as he was slightly confused with his best friend's way of thinking.

"Erm, alright. I'm actually not sure if I'll go," Roy said to Marth.

"What!? No! You absolutely have to come with me! What if I get mauled by angry chicks, if they discover that I have a date?" Marth shouted in fear.

"Well, then you'll be stuck," Link commented, as he smirked at Marth.

"But-… I-… ARGH! … I JUST NEED YOU GUYS TO COME ALONG WITH ME TO THE DAANNNNCEEEEEE!" Marth wailed, as bursts of tears flooded out of is eyes and onto the floor.

Link and Roy sweat dropped as they watched Marth sob away while he rested is head into both of his arms on the lunch table. The Prince of Altea was sobbing for quite some time now, sobbing away for about a grand total of fifteen minutes, twenty nine seconds, and eleven milliseconds. It's a miracle that no one in the lunch room was paying attention to the president of the high school bawl like that, for either they all knew that crying was something that Marth did when he was frustrated or they were too wrapped up with whatever they were doing to care. Probably both. When finally, Roy and Link faced each other and decided what to do. Roy let a long sigh escape from his mouth.

"Marth… Will you stop crying if we attend the Homecoming dance with you?" Roy asked. Marth slowly raised his head up from his arms, as he faced his two best friends all teary, starry eyed.

"Really? But I'm not sure if you'd want to go through all of that trouble for me…" Marth's voice softened, as he tried his best to sound all modest and humble like. Roy and Link smirked at each other, when Roy added:

"Alright, then I guess Link and I won't go to the dance with you."

"Okay… cool, I'll see you guys there at seven… Wait... WHAT?!? Ack! NO! Come with me, come with me! I want you guys to accompany me to the dance so I won't get attacked by fan girls!" Marth said, as he started to wail again. Link let out a mushroom sigh as Roy sweat dropped, for they both knew that there was no way for either of them to spend their Friday night in solitude.

* * *

"So, is this your first day of soccer practice?" Zelda asked Samus.

A loud clang followed after that sentence was ended, as Samus had dropped a book into her locker. The other blonde faced the insides of her blue locker and decided which textbook she would need for homework today. She knew that there was no Biology homework, Ms. Tran didn't ever assign any problems in the World Geography textbook, and they had just completed a section in Geometry, there was no textbook that needed to be taking home. Samus smirked at herself for not having to take home a load of textbooks and weighing down her bag. When she stood up, she forcefully slammed the locker door, as she placed the lock on the knob of the door. Zelda took a step back from the loud slam, thinking that the bounty hunter was venting out her anger. As a matter of fact, Samus was very giddy today because of soccer practice and the fact that there was not that much homework!

"Yes! I don't really have that much homework today! I'm glad that Ms. Brown delayed that Spanish project a couple of days. Now I have more time to work and do stuff. But to answer your question, Zellie, yes. I do have soccer practice today," Samus told Zelda. She cleared her lock, and faced Zelda.

"This is going to be so exciting for me! Except, hopefully none of the guys will treat me like assholes when I get there. Ugh, I didn't get that much sleep last night because I was out doing a lot of random shit last night. Anyways, I just don't wanna go through some stupid bullshit over there on the fields, if I have to suffer the same goddamn bullshit that I always go through," Samus cussed, as Zelda cocked her head to the side in confusion. Samus was losing Zelda in that amidst of curse words. It was only a few, but she still did not understand what the bounty hunter was saying.

"Erm, right. Anyways, I hope you have a good time with soccer practice. I think I may want to look for Peach and ask her about something," Zelda told Samus, as she left the other girl be.

"Alright, cool. See ya tomorrow then!" The bounty hunter waved good bye to the Princess, and started to head off.

The first thing that Miss Aran had to do was change in the locker room. Well, Samus was extremely delighted to see that none of those cheerleaders, who were also in the MRL Fan Club, were having practice today. She heard in the morning announcements that the MRL would be busy having a club meeting in one of the empty classrooms. It didn't really matter to Samus, because she was too happy to see an empty locker room. Only, her mood was slightly dropped as she opened the door of the girls' locker room and a foul stench filled the air. Well, it wasn't foul, but more of fruity essence, which was not pleasant to Samus' nostrils. Oh curse the freshmen for spraying melon-peach perfume in the air after gym class! Samus would have puked a whole, actual melon in disgust to find that the locker room smelled that way while she changed into her soccer clothes. For now, she would just have to deal with it. As a matter of fact, Samus would have to deal with a lot of things for the rest of the day.

The sun faded into the sky, when Samus arrived on the field. She was surprised to see that many of the boys were already warming up. They were all stretching their legs and arms out, while some were practicing their throws for a throw in. After a while, Marth blew a whistle as they all grouped together at the center of the field. She slightly frowned at herself, because perhaps she was a little bit late. Mr. Jackson was probably dealing with some sort of meeting at the school, while Marth was instructing all of the team players with warm ups to get them started. Prince Marth Lowell of Altea… Oh how Samus despised that name! Even at the sound of it, Samus grimaced and gritted her teeth in anger. She was just tempted to lunge herself at Marth, strangle him to death, and send him to the seventh level of Hell. Alright, maybe that was a little bit extreme for Samus Aran, but it didn't change the fact that she somewhat loathed Marth with all of her heart. As a matter of fact, it would be no surprise if Marth started practice without her! She knew the way he would act and treat her. He would treat her as if she didn't mean anything to the team. Her mind was fuming, as she marched up to the center of the field. Marth was lively chatting away with most of the members of the team, huddled around him, as he gave out instructions for positions.

"Now, Fox… You will play left mid offense, while Falco is going to back you up by taking the position of-"

"MARTH LOWELL!" A shriek pierced into the sky.

As the entire boy's soccer players looked up, they found themselves a very (and might I add VERY) angry Samus approaching them, with a lot of steam coming off from her head in rage. As most of the boys' (except Link) faces turned into fear and shock, Samus still strutted up to them with her chest thrown out and her head boiling. The boys' soccer turned into stone, as they were worried about a woman's temper. Most of the boys knew very well that they should never test a woman's anger. Especially Marth, since he had known very well with his sister and mother about this certain topic. A woman's anger should never be testified with anyone. Not even a single, vicious gorilla. Even more, if it was Samus Aran, who had muscle and attitude that could strike down a tower in less than a flash. As the rest of the team backed away from Marth, Samus kept on marching directly at Marth. For once, Roy was concerned for Marth, since he really blew it this time.

"Oh shit," Marth said out loud to himself when Samus finally became close enough to them.

"Marth Lowell, I demand to know why the fuck you started practice without me!" Samus enraged at him. The whole team faced Marth to see his reaction and what he would say next. The Prince of Altea feigned to be surprised by her words.

"Oh? Is that so, Aran?" The whole team glanced at Samus to see what her reaction to that would be.

"Yes! That is VERY so! You started practice without me. This is a TEAM! A team deals with all of its players, no matter what!" Samus exclaimed angrily. The team shot their attention back at Marth.

"Ah… I see."

Roy was really worried for his best friend now. Perhaps he would be beaten to the pulp by the bounty hunter's itching muscles of fury. The red haired swordsman actually was surprised to see how calmly Marth was handling all of this. He seemed to be calmer than normal. Maybe Prince Marth Lowell of Altea had found a way to calmly, yet safely deal with Samus Aran?

"Don't 'Ah… I see' me! You knew this! You knew that I was going to be here for soccer practice and yet you started without me! What kind of person do you think you are?" Samus shot at him. Every word pulverized into the air, as the soccer team faced Marth again.

"Oh really? Well, apparently… Mr. Jackson didn't give me the memo about this. I'm SO sorry, Aran, but it looks like you are not on the team. Besides, even if you WERE on the team, you'd need the Master Hand's permission for that. Considering the rules for the Super Smash Brothers High School, I would seriously doubt the Master Hand would grant you that request."

"Stop bullshitting me around! You knew that Mr. Jackson said it was alright that I played on the team! He said it was all up to me to decide whether or not if I wanted to play! He also said that the Master Hand would be alright with it!" Everyone's eye shifted to Marth to see what he'd say.

"Well… Too bad. I just talked to the Master Hand earlier this morning, and when I asked him about this matter, he said that Mr. Jackson would have contacted him about this sort of thing and apparently, he didn't. I wonder why… Perhaps it's because he figured you weren't good enough for the team? Or maybe perhaps he figured that the Master Hand would never allow a girl on the team since it IS against the rules?" Marth inquired to Samus, as he smirked at his comment.

The team faced Samus again to see how she would handle that. Her face was already burning crimson with anger, confusion, and most of all, frustration. Mostly likely, Roy concluded that Samus would reach her peak of "Ultimate Inner Samus Aran Anger" and become literally… a really upset person who'd you not when to mess with even if she was going through her period.

"ARGH! Fuck you, Lowell! I hope you are eaten by several walruses that don't even know how to potty yet!" Samus screamed at Marth.

She started to stomp off the field, as Marth smirked at himself. He felt victorious. He felt that he had won the battle between Samus and himself. A last beam of sunlight hit his face, and he never felt so rejoiced. Having Samus Aran on the team would be a nuisance. There was something about Samus Aran that Marth Lowell found to be unacceptable. When he first met the infamous female bounty hunter, he knew there was something about her that he ought to watch for her.

There had been rumors about her, after all. Rumors of her past life. They said that she had once been associated with female gangsters. She did drugs, drank alcohol, smoked, and did all of this random other badass shit in her life. He didn't believe in her because she was one of those high school delinquents who dropped out of school and lived life on the road. Marth believed that there would be no success from her since she was a former female, motorcycle gangster. Though the question of why she came back here at this high school, gravely struck him. Why would she want to continue her life when she knew there would be no hope for her? Why in the world would a former motorcycle gangster would want to change her fate and attempt to be successful? She was better off still being in an all girls' gang, probably to become knocked up by some random guy, and live off as a single mother parent to her child.

However, what Marth Lowell didn't expect was the bounty hunter to stop only five yards away from him. The ex-female motorcycle gangster only found herself wildly grinning upon herself. An idea had sparked in her mind, and it was a very interesting thought as well. A thought where it would involve risking something of her own, but it would also risk something of Marth's as well. She spun around on both heels of her feet, as she faced Marth Lowell once more.

"Or perhaps you are too cowardly to bend the rules a little bit," Samus faced the Prince, as she smirked at herself. Marth tilted his head to the left in wonder, amusement, and slight confusion for what Samus was saying. The whole team started to focus again on the Prince and the bounty hunter's interaction.

"What are you exactly implying, Aran?" Marth asked, with an eyebrow raised.

"I'm setting up a proposal for the both of us. A chance to see who the winner is and who the loser is between the two of us."

"A bet?" Samus nodded her head, as she smiled at the Prince. The Prince smirked back at her, for he could never take down this proposal. This would be a good way for him to prove how glorious he was, hopefully he would have honor bestowed on him for it. Fame and honor was what Marth strived for in life. It was to prove himself worth as the Prince of Altea. "Name your terms."

"It's simple. We play a soccer game. Right here and right now. We'll divide the team up into two separate teams, as you'll have your own team, and I'll have my own. The team that wins, wins the bet.

"… Keep going."

"If I win, I get to stay on the team. The Master Hand does not know about it, and it's a secret between us, the whole team, and Mr. Jackson. No word of this thing shall EVER leak to anyone else. If you win, I'll leave this place forever. I'll never set a foot on a soccer field again, and I won't interfere with any of your soccer activities no matter what," Samus offered, with that smirk still plastered on her face.

Marth heavily thought on the topic. What did he have to lose? He was pretty confident with what he had to do. Being the best player on the boys' team, he knew that he could win with the people he would select. He was not afraid of Samus Aran. There was nothing to be feared about her. Only the fact she had large, bugling muscles for a girl and she seemed to get pretty violent when she was pissed off. Definitely something you didn't want to mess around with. Even though he was risking the fact of having Samus on the team, the azure haired swordsman was pretty sure that he could gain more respect, fame, and honor for himself if he were to win this bet. That's what all of Altea was about. As a matter of fact, the Altea country and morals were very similar to the Anglo Saxons. So considering the fact that Marth lived in a very warring society: talking about revenge, honor, and treasure, he wouldn't let down a bet similar to this. He would boast about what he would do, and he would be sure to make that promise to himself come true.

"You're on." He ended that sentence with smug look.

* * *

** I cannot express my gratitude for those who reviewed… (gives FROSTING and COOKIES to all! xD)**

**Love,**

**-BKP**


	8. The Bet

**I feel… happy. Oh dear Lord, let some parts of my life be a dream that I can't ever wake up from!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Super Smash Brothers Melee. **

**If I did, I would win the whole Gamer's Quadralthon thing at my high school, which recently happened. I would also have all the couples I like in SSBM end up together and have a sappy, romantic ending. Also, I'd be powerful enough to somehow fire one of my teachers and replace her with a better, more experienced teacher so I'd actually receive better grades in my class! **

**If a story similar to this, (in plot, character, or dialogue) that author is obviously lacking creativity and originality. Please report that person to me, so I can leave them a warning about what they wrote. Thanks for reading this bullshitty Author's Note. Onward to the chapter.**

* * *

"**Character is the real foundation of all worthwhile success." – John Hays Hammond.**

**Chapter 8 – The Bet**

"Hmmm…" Marth pondered deeply. Selections were a hard and careful action to make.

Samus rolled her eyes at the sight of the Prince of Altea, as she watched him stand to her right side. His fingers from his right hand cupped around his chin, while his elbow was supported by his left hand. This was taking forever for Samus. What the hell was going through Marth's mind that made him ponder so much about which team mate he was going to select for his team? He had already been standing around, staring at the team, for about four minutes trying to debate whether or not he should have a boy named John on his team. The bounty hunter let out an irritated groan as she tried to refrain herself from lunging at Marth and screaming at him to just pick someone. Patience was something that Samus only had for a temporarily amount of time, until it quickly faded away to leave her in agony.

"Hmmmmm…" Marth thought to himself again.

This time he said that: "hm" longer, louder, and with more thought. It only intimated Samus more. She was ready to slap Marth for taking being the idiot he was, and send him back to Altea. The whole team was also impatient with Marth's decision. They all had a keen look on their faces and were all groaning at the temperature of the afternoon. 'Twas a really hot day, for the sun was being joyous and just overall **hot**. Samus thought she was going to seriously become suffocated by the heat as if it was being compressed into the air and choking her softly.

"Hhhhhhhhhhhmmmmmmmmmmmmmm…" Marth pondered more with the idea of John on his soccer team. That was it for the bounty hunter. Her time limit was over.

"GARGH! MARTH LOWELL YOU BETTER FUCKING PICK SOMEONE OR I'M GOING TO HAVE TO TAKE A RUBBER CHICKEN AND STRANGLE YOU WITH IT!" Samus screamed at the Prince of Altea.

At the high tones of a woman's scream darting through the air, all of the boys jumped and even Marth. For the cunning, sly Prince had an exclamation point next to the side of his face. Fear was shaking back and forth like a large bell vibrating inside of him. All of boys' eyes were popping out of their sockets, (except for Link. Link always had his cool no matter what.) and were just petrified of the young woman's anger. Women could become scary once their anger was activated. That was a thought Marth kept closely to his mind, for he didn't want to receive neither any physical abuse nor neutering from the infamous bounty hunter.

"Erm… I pick John," Marth said, as he pointed to the team member dressed in very tight, purple short shorts and a blue shirt. Samus let out a long, irritated over-exaggerated sigh to show her impatience for the blue haired swordsman. She faced the line up of boys in front of her, as if she was a bold standing gardenia in front of a line of weeds.

"Well, that took a long time…" Samus commented in an obvious, yet loud way. Marth sent her many death glares at her for saying so, as he rolled his eyes. "I pick Fox."

The male, anthropomorphic fox strode up to a place next to Samus, while the ex-female gangster smirked in pride. Marth's face fell into disgust, as he was angry at himself. Everyone in the team knew that Fox was best at tackling people in soccer with his long kicks sliding across the grass. The swordsman was planning to select Fox on his team, if Samus had chose someone else. However, the fact that she chose him… was disappointing to him. What could he do without Fox? He shot that female a glare, for taking Fox away from him. When she noticed Marth's glare at her, she only glared back at him. Marth and Samus both were glazing their eyes at each other for a moment in rivalry. To them, this was war. A war between a pretty, popular boy and a grungy, low class girl. Marth Lowell faced Samus, as he took note of those black eye lined emerald eyes surrounded by mascara and that blood red lipstick on the corners of her mouth. He was still confident that a female gangster couldn't win. What did she have to prove? That she was a failure at life? Nothing more. Marth could win this match between her, even without Fox. He had higher capability to win.

"I choose Roy."

The red haired boy followed up to where Marth stood as he halted in his steps for a moment. He looked back at the unselected people and back to where Marth's selected team members were. He was actually concerned for Marth. By the looks of it, Roy had already calculated the odds of the match. So far, Samus had the upper hand. However, that wasn't what concerned Roy. Roy could care less if Marth loss. As a matter of fact, the general was actually hoping that Samus could beat Marth. Sure, he supported his best friend; however… there was something about Marth that needed to be proven. Pride and honor was what Marth was familiar the most. Marth's family was in favor for those two values. Though, pride and honor was what made the young Prince the way he was. He needed to soften up at times when it came with different people. He needed to be taught a lesson of common people.

"Hmmm… Link. Link will be on my team," Samus said. She smirked at Marth again, for choosing one of his best friends. Marth remained his cool.

"I pick Connor."

By now, Roy noticed that Marth was purposely selecting the average soccer players. The general knew his friend inside and out as if he was a book he had read too many times. The Prince of Altea was choosing the players that lacked the skill that he had. He wasn't choosing those players that had the upper hand. Instead, he was trying to prove something out of this game as well. He was trying to prove how he could beat Samus even with the average soccer players. It was to show that he didn't need all of his best soccer players to win a match. He was wrong though. Marth should have understood something about each and every foe he encountered. It was to never, ever underestimate them.

The game would begin. All of the players were decided upon; each team was at one end of the field ready for the battle. Both of the captains of the team were facing each other in their eyes. Prince Marth's chestnut eyes fixed a stare at Samus' bright green orbs. There was silence for a moment, as for that moment… the two understood each other. They understood and were perfectly aware of why they wanted to win. They knew what reasons they had for fighting, and what they were trying to establish. But Marth smirked at himself because he knew that Samus couldn't possibly win, the bounty hunter had a coy look on her face. She realized that the blasted Prince thought that she couldn't win, she would prove him wrong. She had the strength, power, determination, and courage to do so. The fire between the two was flaming and Marth set a soccer ball in between them. This would determine who would be the winner.

"You can have the ball first," Marth told Samus. Samus' brow ceased upwards, as she never thought that the Prince would give her the upper hand for a moment.

"Oh?" she inquired. With his right foot, he dribbled the ball upwards to the exact center of the field.

"Yes. Since you are still unfamiliar to the sport of soccer, I'll the ball for you now," he was saying. He lifted his finger in the air, and closed his eyes as he was about to declare: "Aran, it's very important you realize that-"

_**FOOSH!**_ A wind had brushed across his face. His eyelids cracked open as they faced the grassy ground. The ball disappeared. He faced down at the ground in disbelief. When he came to his senses, Marth faced his right to see Roy's expression. Roy was just as in mount of disbelief as he was. He also looked over to Connor and saw that he was admiring his team's half of the field. The Prince looked downwards to his end of the field to discover that Samus was already making her way to shooting a goal.

"_OH NO, SHE DOESN'T!" _Marth's mind screamed.

In less than a rocket's speed, the azure haired darted down the field to where Samus was. He still had time to catch up with her. This was becoming interesting to Roy and Link. Link was still on Samus' end of the field, and was only slightly pondering over Samus' determination to win. They were both similar to each other than they thought. Even if the other two swordsmen confronted Marth about this matter, they were aware that he would not be able to recognize the fact that they were similar. For now, Link faced over to Roy. He admitted that he got along better and was closer with Roy, mostly because Roy didn't pester him as much as Marth. They both faced each other and nodded. They were aware that they had to prove to their boastful friend that he… had met his match.

The boastful young man was finally able to draw near the dominant, young lady with his lighting fast speed. As he used his regular move to steal the ball from Samus, he realized that… it didn't work. It failed. The hunter was able to successfully scurry to her right, when she saw Marth's foot come in contact with her own. Marth tried again, as he realized again that it wouldn't work. She was already familiar with all of his moves. But the question was how did Samus know how he was able to approach a forward and steal the ball from him? As if an electric shock of memory came to mind, he realized that the bounty hunter knew all of his moves because she observed how all of the players on the field moved. He remembered in gym class, that only her eyes would be focusing on the field, watching the player's footwork with scrutiny. She could predict all of his steps in her mind, and figure out a way to dodge it. He would need a new way to get close to the ball, and steal it away from Samus. The question was: how?

His mind was sorting through very different tactics that he had used before, however, he would have to come up with another plan. Samus had memorized the way Marth had approached and attacked the forwards, before shooting a goal. The Prince looked up, and realized that he still had time. She was only half way down his half of the field. However, there was something about this battle that he realized. No one was helping him steal the ball from Samus. All of them were basically stationed at their own positions, and not doing anything because they were either too lazy or too scared of Samus to do so. He was the only one. He would have to figure out his own way to steal the ball from this weird girl, and only he could be the one to stop her. It only took him a matter of time to diverse a new method.

He smirked at himself as a predator smirks at his prey when he is just about to dart after her. Similar to the quick, fast movements of a lion, the Prince of Altea's right foot came in contact with Samus' dribbling, until just when the hunter was about to move far right to dodge it, she failed to notice his left leg come right in front of her as the Prince's half of his body came meeting with her. She immediately stopped to prevent herself from bumping into Marth, as a short gaze in his eyes. Her brilliant, green black eye-lined eyes stared with deep intensity that he stared back at her similar to that for a moment. For a second, Samus was about to wonder why in the world was she was even stopping to bother to look at him. He was an ass, and that was it. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that they were similar in many different ways, or perhaps it was just something irrational which could have been explained later on.

Taking this opportunity, Marth quickly stole the ball from Samus, as he started to dribble down the other end of the field. In a mist of anger, the lioness started to run after the Prince as well. She had to catch her prey, that blasted wilder beast, before it was too late. No one would help them. All of the other players were just standing around on the field, closely observing them play. No one wished to ever play against each other due to their laziness and the fact that they thought that the end would be heartbreaking for Samus. They didn't want to be the ones there when Samus did break down. But still, the whole team except for Roy and Link were completely underestimating Samus' abilities. She was so much more than that. Women are powerful creatures who could do anything if they set their minds to it. Samus was a perfect example of that type of strength in a woman. An extremely strong gardenia that was taught to collect the different parts of her at times, and bring herself up to do what she felt was justified. Carefully planning with what she would do, she knew that there would be no stopping of the rivalry between Marth and herself.

* * *

Zelda wandered through the hallways of her own home, as she searched for her father. It had already been one complete hour since school had ended. The Princess of Hyrule had gone home and was able to finish all of her homework. It only occurred to her that she needed to concern her father about this issue for whether or not she should attend the Homecoming Dance. She hoped she could go. If there was anything that Zelda needed, it would be that she would get out of her own home and live life for once. Yes, she did often find herself traveling to Hyrule Market with the escort of her royal bodyguards, but Nintendo City and its many wonders were fascinating to young Princess' mind. It was as if her mind was growing into a beautiful gardenia who wished to learn more and more of her surroundings. Her curiosity had her rolling with excitement, yet she was fearful of that strange, new world. 

She continued to search for him. Where in the name of the Sacred Realm was her father? She sauntered around the dimly, lit hallways, made out of stone and wood, with the earthy shades and tones all around her. Browsing around, she was just passing down the hall, past an open door, when she discovered that her father was in his Study room. She immediately spun around, to meet her father lounging in a large chair, with a letter in his hand.

"Father," she spoke to him.

His eyes lifted off the letter, clutched in his left hand, as he saw his young daughter facing him, outside from the door way. He warmly smiled at his daughter, as she noticed the sun's last rays hitting from the window above him, and onto his faded auburn hair. She observed him for a moment, the King of Hyrule. He was growing old. Older than she thought. Princess Zelda was well aware of the fact that her father had married her mother at a very late age, and now signs of oldness were coming about. The brilliant, red flames in his hair were slowly dying down, as if a fire was flickering about, and was about to be put out by the cold water of death. He was a shriveled up old man, and he wasn't as young and bright as he used to be.

"Zelda. What is it, my dear?" her father questioned, patience and love in his voice. It was only until then, when Zelda realized that his time would come as sooner as she thought. It was too early. She wasn't ready for anything that would result with him leaving her forever. His voice was cracking, and he was becoming more fragile and weak. The fire was only merely flickering by now. She slowly stepped closer to her father, as she began to speak.

"I wanted to… uh- ask you about something."

_He was only barely breathing and living by now._

"It's about this social event at my high school."

_His time would come._

"Well… Father, I need your permission to attend this sort of event… and-…"

_Lie in his throne? Wear his crown? Could she do that? Could she run her own country?_

"I… I… I… I don't know."

_It wouldn't be possible. She was still too young and too inexperienced to do so. She was too naïve, innocent, idealistic, and pure for that sort of title._

"… I can't do it. Forget it. Forget everything I said, Father. I'm going to… wash up and go to bed early tonight."

_She could become corrupt, unmoral, and would love to feast on her own kinsman's flesh and swallow her own blood. It would be as if a dove turned into a crow with darkness splattered all over her._

She started to leave.

"Zelda. If you are wishing to talk about the Homecoming dance, you have my permission to go. I received a letter, right here, explaining all the details of your school events. Your school keeps me informed with everything that happens, and what will happen in the future," her father answered. Zelda placed her foot back, as her body turned towards her father. He was still smiling at her with that gentle part of him to show his love for her, as her father.

"Come here, child," he said, as he opened his arms.

In retrospect, Zelda began to feel as if she was a small child again, with tears welling up in her eyes. The tears were running down her cheeks, as she had no choice but to dash into her father's arms and sob. She held her father tightly, as she buried her face into him. She tried her best to preserve the best memory of him as possible in her mind, right here and now at that moment. His cologne of faded fresh, mint leaves, the feel of his skin like autumn's crisp leaves, every capture and aspect of his face and body structure. She wanted him to remain in her memory forever, until the day he died.

"I don't want you to go… I don't want to take up your place. I'm not ready. I'll never be ready," the young Princess choked out, with her face buried in her father's lap.

Her father's wrinkly, withered hands started to slowly stroke his daughter's hair. As he still smiled at Zelda for a moment.

"Zelda, Zelda. Do not be afraid. Royals come and go. It's a never ending cycle of day and night. You are still young, and you are slowly rising your way up into the sky just like the sun. Once you fully rise up there, you'll cast the most beautiful, luminous light of all. Right now, I'm currently at dusk. I'm slowly fading to night, where I'll live in the afterlife. There will be a moment though… Where only the moon shall shine, and you will not know what to do. Only your skin will show the sickness and paleness just as if the moon's silver, pale skin shall show, and that will be a moment of frustration. But the answer will lay right in front of you for a moment. Just like when for the briefest moment, both the sun and moon shine together in the sky and share it. That will be the time where you must grasp and reach for that answer, and let your frustration and sickness in your mind will sink back down into the darkness where it once belonged," he whispered in her ear.

Her eyes slowly started to drain out the salty tears she had, as she tried to control her crying. The wetness of her father's lap was caused by her tears, and she still remained childish with what she believed in.

"Dearest, at times like these… You must absolutely, positively… stay confident with yourself, and remain secure. You always try so hard to be perfect ever since your mother died, but dear… At times, you must remember to relax for a moment. Before you mother died, she had two wishes. One of which was for you to attend the Super Smash Brothers High School, and another was for you to become a strong young woman," her father explained to her. Zelda lifted her face up at her father, as her father reassured her again with a grin.

"Mother… wished for that?" Zelda questioned. Her father nodded.

"Yes, she wished that right before she died. She and I wanted more than anything… for you to attend this school, where you shall find answers to everything you will need to know."

"Know for what?"

"That, my dear, you'll find out yourself. You must question yourself at times, and asking yourself why you exist. Why are you there at that school? Why are you attempting to learn about the environment around you? Once you'll finish one year there, I will ask you these questions and possibly more, again. If you answer all of these questions with what I seek in my own heir, I'll allow you to do many great things."

Richard Harkinian slowly rose up from his chair, as he struggled a little bit. Zelda was still kneeling down on the floor, next to his reading chair in the study room of the castle, with the last of her tears flowing down on the stone ground. She felt the brush of her father's robes against her left cheek, and she already felt that the ghost of her father was disappearing from her sight. She turned around to see her father leave the room, as she wondered to herself if she could really live up to such a great title. Her father smiled at her again, for once last moment as he headed back off to his room.

Her mother. She had fond, yet painful memories of what her mother was like. She was strong, prideful, confident, independent, and yet beautiful all at once. The people of Hyrule called Estella Harkinian: "The Iron Queen" because she was firm, and strong like iron. She remembered those little happy, painful memories of her mother as they cut into her mind and soul as if they were made out of shards of glass. Her father, of all people, could talk about her mother openly, while others thought of it as a taboo. She was feared by everyone and almost everything, because Hyrule had never seen a woman so power hungry, yet with some compassion in her heart. Zelda wiped away her tears, for she would not… and could not… think of Estella Harkinian at this moment.

* * *

"Lowell! Get your ass back here!" Samus yelled at the Prince. 

The motorcycle gangster followed the Prince of Altea with such speed, that Marth only tried to run faster when he saw the female catching up to his speed. He had nothing to fear. He was Prince Marth Lowell of Altea, and no one could match his speed on the soccer or battle field. He was anything that he wanted to be. Though, there was more to this match that Marth should know. It wasn't about whether or not Marth would win; it was more of who desired to win more. Samus should have been known by Marth now, that she desired to win more than anything. Miss Samus Aran knew how to get what she wanted… the hard way. There would be no stopping her, because she was confident in herself, nonetheless and strongly believed that she could defeat anyone she wished.

Marth dribbled the ball, in the fastest way possible as he made a turn to the right. He would score the goal. Just as he was coming in contact with the goal, he didn't notice Samus' leg coming into a tackle for him just until it was too late. He should have known though, because to anyone on the field, it was fairly obvious. But it was persistency, focus on the game, and too much self-confidence in him that made him unaware of Samus' leg to tackle him. Severe pain followed as soon as Samus' right foot made contact with Marth's shin. The blue haired swordsman tumbled down on the grassy field, for he was in great pain due to Samus' leg making contact with him. A burning sensation of a heel making into his shin made with the bounty hunter's heel, as he lowered down and covered up his shin with his hands. He hollered a little bit for the pain in his left shin, as from his face fell to right side, hard. It felt as if an iron fist had punched him in the left shin. From his view on the grassy ground, he watched Samus spurt down the field to the goal. With her blonde hair wrapped into a high ponytail, she was making her way to score a goal.

As if some sort of fire had reached its ultimate "burn" level, Marth felt as if now was his moment to shine as a soccer player. He knew that there was pain in his shin, but he could not let Samus win. He could imagine the faces of all of those Rustenburg's players at the final match for the soccer finals, and them laughing at the fact… they had a girl on the team. Especially if they knew it was Samus Aran. That bounty hunter, who was known all over the street urchins for her extreme behavior and living alone, was playing against them. He could even imagine the whole school laughing at him, and him becoming embarrassed by everyone. It would ruin his reputation on the team and for the school. Besides, even if Samus were to join the team, there would be no way the team could keep it a secret. There would be bound to be a leakage in the pipes of the conversations and secrets. He was in charge of the team this year, and this was his chance to prove that he was in control of everything. He despised Samus' behavior and the way she acted in front of him, and he knew he would have to stop her. She was ruining his life! She was the one who caused trouble for him. She was the one who should stop her rebellious behavior in front of him. She was the one, out of all of his classmates, to show signs of disrespect to him.

He delicately lifted his body off the ground, and he knew he would not lose this fight without a second confrontation. As the entire field players were watching him with careful eyes, he moved his shaking limbs as he would slowly get up. It was then, when Roy witnessed something in Marth's eyes that he had seen only once or twice. It was a threatening look, where Marth would look upon at his enemy with extreme hate, and determination. Normally, the Prince always took his opponents very lightly, and could be considered to be invincible with his athletic skills. But now, that look in Marth's eyes was something he would only face an opponent only if he was serious about taking them down. And Marth was more than serious about defeating Samus.

Samus kicked the ball as hard as she could and was making her way up to the goal; she had a good feeling about this. She was confident in herself with winning and she was well capable of coming out on the field as victorious. She could do this. She was so close. The goal was only a few meters away from her, and the goalie appeared to be petrified of what kind of shot Samus would use. So far, the game was tied. The score was 1 to 1. Samus smirked at herself, and just as her right foot was about to make the blow for scoring the goal, a blue whiz stole the ball from her. She blinked a few times in disbelief, as she spun around to see that Marth had stolen the ball from her. In a tornado of anger, she glared at the Prince while he was prepared to make his way at the other end of the field.

"Lowell! Fuck you! I hope you burn in hell for stealing the ball from me!" Samus shouted at him, when she finally caught up with him.

"Whatever, Aran! You better hope that you are prepared to never smell fresh, cut grass ever again, because I have no intention of losing!" Marth replied, as he smirked at himself for getting almost halfway down the field, back to the end where he wished to score.

"Keep on telling yourself that, pretty boy. Do you wanna know why there's a "wo" in "woman"? It's because the "wo" can kick the man's ass and look good doing it!"

With that last sentence ended, Samus was able to successfully steal the ball from Marth by attacking him from behind again and then her left leg coming to the side. Marth fell for the trick again. His mind wasn't focused on the enemy, but more on the ball as he was confused yet again. Samus advanced down the field, as if a horse was proudly galloping down in battle for victory. Marth quickly caught up to her, as he pushed her to from the left, to take the ball away from her once again. She leaned to the right side of her body, as she tried to shove him off and shoot the ball. They struggled a bit more, from side to side, as little did they know about Mr. Jackson coming back from his meeting.

Mr. Jackson watched to two playing, as he noticed the fire and water between the two. Mr. Jackson had been a physical education teacher for many years now, but he knew that better than anything now, that these two shared many similarities. They both desired to win. That sort of emotion was something that was only provoked by determination, will, skill, and patience. If Samus and Marth could be put together in some sort of way to formulate some sort of chemistry, Mr. Jackson was sure that in less than a few weeks that the school would be finally able to win against Rustenburg. The Super Smash Brothers High School was already known for having a five year losing streak from Rustenburg, ever since the school's principal had changed. Many suspected that the players were using steroids, but there was no exact proof. He continued to watch the two players.

This was it. Samus had successfully made her way to Marth's end of the field again, and this was her moment to do what she always wanted to do. It felt as if she was a pop diva, ready to sing her song, and shine as the brightest star in the night sky. She braced herself, mentally and physical. She would need to make sure she put enough force on the ball, to send it rocketing through the air and find contact with the goal's net. And even so, Marth was just approaching her, and she would need to make this quick. Correct accuracy and precision was made her qualified to become a team member. She lifted her right leg backwards, and with all of her might, she shot the ball. As Marth and everyone on the field watched ball, there was absolute silence to see the results of the ball and the goalie.

"NNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

The yell came from the boastful teenager. As Samus spun around, she saw that Marth dropped on his knees, and put his hands in his hair in frustration. He lowered his head to the ground, in fury and somewhat shame. The bounty hunter smirked at herself for being able to successfully score the goal. The score turned into 2 to 1. She had won. For a moment, Marth lifted his head and glared at Samus with such intensity in his eyes. Link rolled his eyes at Marth for being the way he was, as he faced Roy. Roy grinned at Link, as Link, for the first time ever this year so far, grinned back at him. Marth's lesson was hopefully taught. He was too cocky, arrogant, and had to be taught a lesson. Confusion was stirring about in Marth's head. How could a lowlife bounty hunter defeat him? He was the Prince Marth Lowell of Altea. The one who wielded the Falchion and was considered to be one of the top swordsmen in his time! He was as fast as a cheetah, and was unstoppable.

"Good game," Samus commented, as she approached Marth. Marth looked up with her for a bit, with his questioning behavior of why she was talking to him. That was even more mortifying for the Prince. The bounty hunter smiled at him again, for putting up a good challenge.

"Yeah, good game… Whatever," Marth replied, as he unacknowledged Samus's extended hand to him. Samus' mind immediately went back into a state of anger and hate for the Prince.

"Hmph."

The air filled with clapping, as both of the players faced the outside ends of the field. Mr. Jackson smiled at all of the players, as made his way to the center of the field.

"That was an excellent match, you two!" Mr. Jackson exclaimed. "Aran, I love your use of skills, accuracy, and precision. The only thing I noticed that you need to work on is your patience. At times you attacked Lowell too soon, and I know that if you wish to steal a ball for an opponent, you have to make sure you are collected together as a whole," Mr. Jackson began to criticize. As Samus began to glare at the coach for a moment, he added: "I'm not saying you are a bad soccer player… In fact, you are wonderful. You just need to sharpen your skills in some areas. I'm definitely considering you to come on the team."

With a smile, Mr. Jackson extended his right hand out, and Samus took it. They shook hands.

"Welcome to the team, Miss Samus Aran. I apologize for the Master Hand not agreeing to our terms, but-"

"WAIT A MINUTE!" A voice pierced into the sky. The coach and the female player faced a few feet away, to see Marth sitting down on the field and talking to them. He slowly got up, and tossed his hair to the side, as he continued to speak. He strode up towards them to make his point.

"How can we let Aran on the team? You said that the Master Hand did not agree to your terms. Besides, I still reject the idea of _her_ coming on team!" Marth replied, as he crossed his arms.

"Well, erm… I figured, Lowell, that we wouldn't tell him yet," Mr. Jackson explained.

"That's not right though! We can't do that! I mean, how would the Master Hand allow Aran on the team? Coach, I swear to God, that the Master Hand would kill us if he found out," Marth reasoned, as he faced the coach. The swordsman, at this moment, really wished that the coach of the soccer team would completely drop the idea right now. Perhaps there was a way for him to convince the coach that he should completely forget about the idea.

"Who here in Nintendo City would DARE to tell the Master Hand though? Huh? I want all of you here to make an oath, for sworn secrecy and for the best of our school to win against Rustenburg this year. You've all already promised that you would do your part to make sure that we all win, and now this is our chance. Aran is the person I want to be on the team. I look for the best, and I will get only the best. All of you here are a bunch of actual ladies who are too goddamn, fucking lazy to not make a real match between Lowell and Aran! Aran has spirit that you all lack, except for Marth," Mr. Jackson said.

"Then what does SHE have that I don't have?" Falco inquired to Mr. Jackson.

"She has talent," Mr. Jackson replied. Samus faced him in feign disbelief, as she began to speak.

"No, I'm not talented. I just have what they lack: skill, strength, courage, power, and the will to WIN."

At those words, Mr. Jackson smiled.

"What do you say, Lowell? You know that you can't win without a fight. You know that there shall be sacrifices made to the team, and this would be one of them…"

Right now, Marth would like to scream no. But it wouldn't work. He knew that Mr. Jackson would allow Samus on the team anyways, even if he rejected the idea. There was no possible way that anyone could convince Mr. Jackson otherwise. He was firey, old man who was very opinionated and he only had to be proven wrong for something to make his opinion change. And there was currently no possible way to prove Mr. Jackson wrong. If he did not agree, he knew that this would result in the whole team pestering him about his promise about winning against Rustenburg no matter how long, and who was on the team. He had to admit though. Samus was good. As a matter of fact, Samus could even be captain of the soccer team. But would she really be able to overthrow him? It didn't matter now, Mr. Jackson already made up his mind for Marth as the captain. There was no way that Mr. Jackson could change captains. After a long while, Marth finally considered.

"Alright, fine. But here's the deal, Aran only plays left offense," Marth said, as he began to start up practice properly. "Alright, guys! Let's do this! We are going to go and rock up some kick ass soccer!"

Samus frowned at that idea for her position.

"I disagree."

Marth spun around and faced the bounty hunter for a moment.

"What?"

"I don't think I should play left offense."

"Why not?"

"I'm more of the middle offense person, because it's easier for me to take on players who could go either left or right. I'm not a left thinking person, so I can't always stay on the left or what not."

"Well, then play right offense. I'm not letting you play center. That's my position!"

"No way, dude! I'm not fucking playing right offense! There is NOTHING you can say or do which will make me play that!" Samus screamed, as another argument was beginning to head up, as Marth glared at Samus.

"Argh, guess what, Aran? I'm not allowing you to play that position. It's mine! Mine, bitch, mine!"

"Did you just call me a: "bitch", pretty boy? Or are my ears mistaking me?" Samus inquired, with her anger rising again.

"Fuck yeah, I did! Bring it on, bitch, because I'm so ready to take you down!" Marth shouted back.

"Don't get too full of yourself, Lowell! You just lost, so stop acting as if you are better than me!" Samus screamed.

"Oh yeah! Think that I can't beat you? Well, then let's fight!" Marth retorted.

"Fine! Bring it then!"

As the two started to run to each other and proceeded to argue, Mr. Jackson faced Roy to his left and commented on the two. He sighed heavily, as he realized that the two would need more work on cooperating with each other than anything in the world.

"Argh… I guess these two still have a long way to go, Flores," the coach said, as Roy nodded.

* * *

In a tall, high corner of second floor classroom, Megan Anderson carefully watched all of the players on the field. Her back was leaning against the wall of the class room, with her arms crossed. Her eyes were focused on particularly two people at the center, a blonde haired girl and a blue haired boy. The sun was falling down in the sky, with the golden and amaranthine hues painting across the sky and the light hitting on Marth's and Samus' faces in a perfect moment. The two were engaged in some sort of argument, and she could hear through the thin, glass that they were shouting at each other. Megan's brown eyes narrowed at the sight of Samus and her verbal interaction with Marth. 

"They are arguing again," Megan commented to all of her attendees for the MRL Fan Club meeting.

"What is Roy doing?" Rachael asked, as she looked up from her latest fashion magazine issue.

"Roy is just discussing serious matters with Mr. Jackson. They're probably talking about Marth and that bitch," Megan informed Rachael, as the brown haired girl smirked at her reference to Samus. Rachael also smiled at Megan's reference to the infamous bounty hunter, as she continued to read about some celebrity's marriage to another celebrity.

"How about Link?" Caitlin questioned in her sugar, high pitched voice.

"He is just rolling his eyes at the argument that Samus and Marth are having," Megan reported.

"Ooohhh… Link rolling his eyes. He looks sexy when he does that," Caitlin said.

"He ALWAYS looks sexy when he rolls his eyes," a girl in the club commented. Caitlin replied by saying: "Whatever."

"She's getting too close, Megan," another girl told her. All of the other sixty club members were all stirring amongst themselves, agreeing with that girl's comment. "I fear that Marth will grow some sort of attraction for that… cursed, young girl."

"Don't worry, Vanessa. There's nothing those two have in common. If they do get together I have a way to bring them down. Well, not just her, actually... everyone. I can bring down that stupid, little blonde ditz named Peach, and I can also bring down Samus. Also that other girl… what's her name? Zelda. Yeah, that girl as well. I just need to dig a little bit," Megan said, as she faced the front of the classroom. She took a few steps in front to the teacher's desk as she pulled out a yellow folder from her backpack.

"Look here. This is… undeniably, Samus. It's just her with shorter hair. Now I ask you, who is that guy in the picture with her?" Megan inquired to all of the members of the MRL Fan Club.

All of them circled around the teacher's desk like bees, as Rachael picked up the portfolio in her hand, and observed all of these different snapshots. At some of the shots, Rachael's eyes widened at the fact that Samus was with another man. From these pictures, anyone could see that this man and Samus were a couple. A beautiful couple, which would bring back bittersweet memories to Samus' mind if she were to come across them again. Rachael, along with many of the other members, flipped and observed the portfolio very closely as they all raised some eyebrows.

"Where did you get this?" Rachael asked immediately to Megan. The brunette was closely observing her nails, acting as if it was nothing and no effort to get a hold of these pictures.

"Well, Rachael, remember, my dad DOES work for the government, right? There are cameras set up everywhere in Nintendo City which are used to make sure that nothing bad happens on the streets, right? Well, sometimes the government takes a look at things where they shouldn't look," Megan commented, as she filed her nails with her nail filer.

At the sound of these words, all of the MRL Fan Club members smirked at one amongst each other. Megan looked up from her nails, as she smiled at all of them. With the looks of greed and hunger for revenge, all of the females in the club put their hands together in agreed to participate in this act. The blindness of jealousy and darkness were covering up all of these young, beautiful girls' sight and were leading them into confusion. Of course, if all of them had known better, they could become more than what they already were. But the lives of misunderstand, loneliness, and depression were many things which caused wrong actions and wrong decisions for these young women. There was only one thought for how the MRL would be able to take Samus down. There would be only one word and one word only to describe it. _Sabotage._

* * *

**Notes to you:**

**1. You guys rock. Period.**

**2. Review if you have any comments, useful criticism, and/or questions.**

**Love, **

**-BKP**


	9. Expect the Unexpected

**The guy t****hat looks like "a clean-cut, brunette version of Kurt Cobain" whom I referred to in the beginning of Chapter 6, is now my boyfriend. Yays. I'm not single anymore. He worships me like a goddess/princess/the sexiest being on Earth. And I have to say, he's adorable and a sexy BEAST! XD He's so sweet and I like him a lot. I glomp him too much though. :P**

**Disclaimer: Never will I own SSB, but I own this piece of imagination.

* * *

**

"**Expect the unexpected!" – Mr. Holt (My seventh grade Biology teacher)**

**Chapter 9 – Expect the Unexpected**

It appeared to be a normal day at the Super Smash Brothers High School, with the lunchroom being very lively and filled with chatter. Everyone was being just lovely and you could even describe the day as being "lovely", even if the MRL Fan Club were planning sabotage. Of course, our beautiful, young ladies were just chatting amongst themselves. Also referring to the fact that Samus was just rambling off about something, probably having to do with that blasted Prince named Marth Lowell.

"Anyways, so yesterday afternoon I was like: 'Dude… There is NO fucking way I'm playing left offense.' And then that stupid bastard was all like: 'I'm fucking better than you at playing that position! You can't boss me around, you byooootttccch.' Of course, I immediately knocked him off his knickers for saying that. He let out a very girly scream, and then Mr. Jackson told me to sit down at the bench to cool off for a bit," Samus explained to Zelda in a very rapid, yet pleased way with herself.

The bounty hunter and the Princess of Hyrule faced over at the center of the lunchroom for a minute, as Zelda looked to see if what Samus said was correct. Marth's nose has a large bandage over it, as he was reading a book. Zelda faced the blue haired boy for a moment, as he certainly didn't appear to be in a pleasant mood. For a moment, Samus smirked in delight for what she had done the other day, as she glared at Marth. Marth looked up to see the sight of Samus' glare towards him. Marth let out a little: "Eep!" and hid behind his book, as he pretended not to notice. Samus smiled at herself for making Marth scared.

"Anyways, Samus. I talked with my father about the Homecoming yesterday. He said I could go," Zelda said.

"Really? Scccchhhhwwwwweeeeeeeeet! You informed him that we are going dress shopping today, right?" Zelda nodded her head. Samus' face beamed with happiness and excitement.

"Excellent! Now we have to find a dress for you, unless you wanna end up like happened next year with Peggy Follows," Samus informed, as she started to tell a story of what happened last year's Homecoming.

During that period of storytelling from Miss Aran, Marth's eyes wandered off from the novel he was reading, and onto Samus' table. He stared heavily at the three blonde ladies. His mind was focused on one particular. The Princess of Hyrule. He carefully watched her laughing at the story that Samus told her. Her face was filled with so much light, radiance, and beauty. He couldn't help, but notice all of those very fine features on her face. Her perfect, slender nose. Her perfect, oval cerulean eyes and her perfect, golden tresses of her hair. Heck, she should be dubbed as a goddess for that sort of beauty! She was perfect. He gaped at her for quite a while, for his mind was no where about reading the history of civil wars in Altea.

"So, anyways Marth… Do you have any idea what I should wear to Homecoming? I mean, I can't decide. I'm thinking about wearing an orange shirt, but eh. I'm not sure if it would be a good color…" Roy was saying, as his voice trailed off.

The red swordsman stopped for a moment, as he noticed what Marth was focusing on. The swordsman finally noticed what Cupid's arrow had hit. A love stricken Marth. In his mind, Roy cursed himself.

"_Oh, she's in for a __**treat**__!"_ Roy told himself sarcastically.

"Hey, Marth, buddy. Are you alright?" Roy said, as he poked Marth's right arm a few times.

"Huh?"

"Marth! For a minute, you weren't answering me! I called you name about six and a half times!" Roy exclaimed, a tad bit furious that Marth wasn't listening to his problems.

"Yeah, whatever," Marth said, as he began to zone out and observe Zelda's face again.

"Marth… You are not listening to me again," Roy placidly commented, as his eyelids drooped in disappointment and discontent.

"Sure, I am."

"Then what is pi divided by 3.14 multiplied by the square root of sixty four divided by negative two squared?" Roy questioned.

"It's a barracuda," Marth answered, completely unaware of what Roy was asking him.

"Wrong! If you round it down, it's two!" Roy told him.

"Yeah, I know I'm right, but- Wait, what did you say?" Marth cried out, as he came back into reality. Roy shook his head at Marth in dissatisfaction.

"You see? You can't even calculate Math, because you are so zoned out! Marth, Math is your second best subject! But, you're not focused. Why are you gawking over that… **girl** over there?" Roy questioned, as he was angry at him.

"Well, what do you expect? She's hot!"

"Marth, please don't tell me you are going to have a fling with her! You've had enough flings back at Altea, and I'm surprised that no one there has created a "Marth Lowell Must Die" movie about you!" Roy said.

"Hey, I'm actually seriously considering this one! She's… different. I'm thinking about taking her to Homecoming."

"Don't even think about it. You'll only end up breaking her heart; once you find out that she's not 'The One' for you. That's what you always say. It's just a typical teen romance fling. Right, Link?" Roy faced the Hero of Time, as he looked up from his secluded little section of the lunch table with his arms folded.

"Whatever. They are all the same. Women are all the same. It doesn't really matter to me anymore," Link stated acidly, as he began to zone out. Marth had made up his mind though. He would work up the courage to ask the Princess of Hyrule out to the Homecoming dance. It didn't matter if whether or not he would break her heart, it only mattered that he could have her now. Now, in his clutches. There would be no going back on what Marth had decided. He was adamant about his decision, and as for now, he would go and gather every ounce of emotional strength in his body and mind to ask the Princess of Hyrule out.

* * *

As for a moment, Link had an anxious look on his face, as he clutched the sides of his uniform. His eyes started to widen in shock and disbelief as the past was streaming through the parts of his brain. His mind was beginning to become tense again, and everything started to speed up again. He was going faster. Faster. Faster. He couldn't find her. Where did she go? Glimpses of different shades of forest green were coming about, and he couldn't find her. Where? 

_Where are you?_

_I can't find you… I can't hear your voice!_

_Please. Answer me! Answer me!_

_I'll find you… No matter what. I promise! I want to see you again._

**A stir of life. It was a very faint stir of life, which was almost impossible to find.**

_I can't live without you. You are the only person who has taught me everything in life._

He found her. Her body was limp and spread out on the grass of the Lost Woods, as there was a sphere of light surrounding her, fluttering in confusion and panic. He saw her. A person he found to be precious to him. His eyes were becoming rounder in trauma, as his mind was paralyzed with astonishment. He rushed over to her side, as her eyes were closed, and the hue of her healthy hair had faded by the color of weak grass. Tears were springing out, and he lifted her body off the ground. He held her close, as he sobbed.

"Wake up… Please. I wanted to save you… More than anything," Link sobbed, as he held her closer. "I love you so much… You are so dear to me… Yet why did things turn out this way? Please don't go! You helped me through so much. I-I-… I want you to stay. S-!"

* * *

"Link! Are you okay?" 

His memory evaporated as quickly as salt water lying in the summer's sun. His eyes launched upwards towards Marth and Roy, across the table from him. His two friends had fear and worry pasted all of their faces. Link realized at that moment, he was panting a bit heavily than normal. Sweat was coming off from his brow, as he nervously looked around the lunch room. Everyone was still among themselves, being lively and cheerful. When his eyes finally landed back on his friends, they were still troubled by his appearance from before.

"I'm fine…" Link replied.

If anyone were to notice, Link's tone of voice right then and there was different. It sounded… well, normal. It didn't have that cold, rigid tone that he would normally use when speaking. It was as if the blonde hair swordsman was a normal, well loved Hylian. Though, the Hylian was not completely satisfied to see his friends' faces with anxious looks. Yes, he admitted that he found his friends to be annoying at times, particularly Marth, but that didn't stop him from caring about them. He ended that sentence with a nervous chuckle, as he attempted to smile at them. He went about to eat his food, but then realized it would be better to leave the lunchroom. His body needed to cool off and so did his memories.

"I'm erm… I'm going to go the bathroom. I feel hot. I've got to… wash something off my face," Link said abruptly, as he made a dash out of the entrance of the room.

"Li-!" Marth began to say, as he rose off from his seat. He extended a hand out to stop Link from going to the bathroom and explain everything to them, but it was too late. The other swordsman was already out of their sight. "nk…" He finished that sentence.

The Prince sunk back into his seat, as he pouted a bit for Link hiding information from them. At that moment, neither of the Alteans uttered a word.

"He doesn't want us to worry," Roy stated seriously with his arms folded.

"He's a fool for thinking that. He's not a burden to us or anything. Sure, he can get on my nerves for making really cruel statements, but I'm still worried for him, Roy," Marth expressed openly to him, as he quietly trailed off.

"And you have every right to be," Roy said with understanding and support in his voice. "He's been through a lot since we first met him. He has every right to go off on his own at times and cry. He just doesn't like doing it in public. He wants to try to give off a strong, prideful appearance. He doesn't want to disappoint _**her**_."

"Ah, _**her**_. Eh? He's got what I'd call a 'complicated love thing' with her," Marth commented slyly.

"Oh shut up. You know that she only thinks of him as a son/brother and the same thing with him. Except mother/sister for him," Roy explained for Link.

"Heh. Yeah. But that doesn't change the fact that he loves her a lot. I can see why. Besides the fact she's cute, she's also very good hearted to do all of the things she did for him," Marth said thoughtfully. "She was his only support for a while."

* * *

In the boys' bathroom, Link scrubbed his face with the palms of his hand. He drenched his face in freezing, icy water from the sink. Even though he felt the water drip across the sides of his face, he still felt burning warmth all over his body. He didn't understand. He rolled up the sleeves of his white uniform shirt, and took off his tie. He continued to wash his face. He wanted to wash those disgustingly, horrid memories away from him. Though, they never seemed to wash off. No one could recover from their past. Especially not Link. He kept on trying though. He wanted to escape it more than ever. Yet, it was an impossible thing to do. More water trickled down his face, and he kept on panting heavily. For a moment, he slowly gazed at his reflection in the mirror. 

In that looking glass, he saw a young man whom was determined and appeared to be fearless. This Hylian had very fine cheekbones etched into his face, along a very nice jaw line. Silver hoops dangling from the lobes of his ears. Crystal eyes, which could pierce through anything. Yet in those eyes contained so much fear, frustration, and isolation. A young Hylian, such as Link, had stunted and missed out on much of his growth for a young man. And if only he was able to get rid of that horrid memory of his from seven years ago, perhaps he could heal from that scar. He was so hostile in his environment. Everyone around him made him feel somehow unsafe and nervous. He didn't know why, but sometimes, he felt there was no one by himself who he could really trust with secrets. Somehow, he both felt calm and relaxed in his life when he was all alone. It felt…that he was strong. But there was something inside Link which made him so weak and delicate when it came with how to love. Though, from the looks of it, Link would have to face more than just what he suffered seven years ago.

* * *

Back in the lunchroom, everything was going quite as normal as could be. Marth was still gawking at Princess Zelda's face, Roy was lecturing Marth about all of the females he dated, and Samus was still going on about the story about Peggy Follows. It wasn't until a matter of time, when Peach was starting to get a little bit impatient with herself. Princess Peach Toadstool had been meaning to talk with Samus and Zelda, for quite a while today. However, if it wasn't something to break her silence. From the looks at her current state the pink princess still had troubles deciding whether or not she should trust her new friends. Of course, Princess Peach didn't consider Samus to be a "new friend", mostly because Samus was with her all through last year in high school. Though, Samus had proven her loyalty to Peach as a friend in a number of countless times, Peach was still nervous and fearful of what happened two years ago. Just when someone believes they can trust someone, they figure out they can't. And that's what Princess Peach Toadstool learned from the hard way. 

She only had one good friend who was with her in her entire life, and which was Princess Daisy. They were close as sisters, and Daisy was practically Peach's first best friend. People would think that Peach received enough love and support from Daisy, but sometimes it wasn't just enough for Peach. Daisy always showered her with love, support, and solace, yet the differences of where she and Daisy lived was always something which separated them as friends. Daisy attended an all girls private school, while Peach attended a public school. The separation between the two princesses was something that always bothered Peach. To her, it wasn't enough at times to have only one best friend. Especially if that best friend of hers didn't attend the same school. As a matter of fact, Daisy and Peach rarely saw each other as much as they did when they were younger. The last time Daisy and her spoke to each other was seven and a quarter months ago. A pretty long time for Peach and Daisy's communication. But that was all going to change very shortly.

"Umm… Zelda? Samus?" The voice squeaked out. Oh how Peach's vocal chords broke out from its bonds! It was as if the chords of a piano were starting to slowly play a beautiful movement, after years and years of being locked up in an attic of pain and loneliness.

At Samus' and Zelda's table, the other two blondes immediately halted in their conversation, as they both faced Peach. None of them uttered a word; for this was the first time that Peach had spoken something in a long time. They both faced her with eager eyes, to see what the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom would say next. Both of them hoped that, perhaps, this would be the time where the Mousy Princess would finally spill out all of the details of her wrenched past. Or maybe that was too early for her to do something as big as that for her.

"Erm… Um. Um. Ummm. Zelda… and Samus… I uh- am having a… get together thing at my castle with one of my friends on this Friday afternoon. Princess Daisy of Sarasaland. I-I… I was hoping that you would be able to come. … But erm, if you guys won't be able to make it… that's alright. I can understand if you're… well, busy," Peach barely spat out.

She firmly bit her lower lip, as she waited for a response. She was still very uncertain though, about her new friends. They seemed to be warm. They seemed to be friendly, loving, and nice. And they seemed to be trustworthy. Yet appearances are always deceiving, and more than anything, Peach did not wish to be deceived by another young woman's appearance and personality once again. Not what happened two years ago. Most other females were such manipulative, disgusting, and beautiful creatures. The Princess wanted nothing more than to perhaps scream all of these feelings of frustration out. She had been suffering for so long, and she knew that maybe that this year. There would be an end to her confusion.

The other two blonde females were shocked at this news. Never, did they think that Peach would invite them at her castle. It certainty seemed to be out of the blue. Of course, two the females were wondering what ever provoked the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom to say that, but whatever it was, it was obvious that she had a hard time working up the courage to do so. She still had a fearful, yet hopeful look in her eyes as she patiently waited for a response. Samus smiled warmly at Peach for asking that sort of question.

"Sure! I'll definitely be there, no matter what!" Samus exclaimed enthusiastically. "Man, you never ask me to come over to your house. I mean, I'm always the one who tries to get together with you, but now you're the one asking! This is gonna be great! I can tell. I bet cha that Daisy must be really nice, if you're friends with her, eh?"

Peach nodded her head slowly, as her eyes shifted towards Zelda for her response.

"Uh… Zelda?"

Zelda tugged a muscle to the left side of her lip, as she thought about it heavily. First of all, she again would have to check with her father to see if he was alright with it. A gut instinct told her that the King would approve. Her father always wanted Zelda to be engaged with some sort of social activity at least once a week. She considered the idea, though she was still unaware of who and what this Daisy person was. She probably would agree with Samus, saying that Daisy must be a nice person, but she wasn't entirely sure. She kept on thinking about the idea, and how long Daisy and Peach must have been friends. But then something else struck her. Friends. Malon. It was right there, when Zelda noticed something. She didn't see Malon for over a week now. Instead, Zelda had been focusing too much on schoolwork to remind herself that such a good-hearted friend existed. How lonely Malon must have been without her! The blonde was perfectly aware of how the redhead always was a bit upset at the fact that she had no female Hylian interaction what so ever. Guilty over swarmed the Princess' body, as she felt so much heaviness for forgetting about Malon.

"I would love to come. Except, there's one thing that I would like to ask you of, Peach."

The other Princess felt every muscle in her body turn to stone, as she braced herself as if something horrible to happen.

"I was hoping that one of my friends, Malon, would be able to come along as well. She's a very sweet girl; I think you and Samus will like her."

The muscles in her body softened, as she felt herself regain to normalness. Sweet girl? That's the same expression that Peach thought of her old friends. Why would she want to meet someone new at her house? She bit the side of her lip, as she quickly went over the idea. She had just begun to accept and trust the other two blondes for a bit, and now one was asking for her to trust her with something else. Bringing a friend over? What was Zelda thinking? Was Zelda going to invite all of these other people to go over and crash her castle by having a party? This was certainty not something that Peach expected and she seemed to frown upon the idea of having another person over. Fury was starting to slowly boil in Peach's mind and body. Or perhaps what was fury wasn't anger at all. The Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom was once again afraid. A phobia of meeting new people, who have the potential to become her friend. Feign affection, betray, and rip her to sheds like a paper doll. Those thoughts struck her mind over and over again. Though, a small part of optimism and hope told her something. It might be a good thing to meet a new person. The more, the merrier. Besides, she didn't want to upset Zelda now. She just made friends with her by inviting her over. She was desperately clinging on to these two other young ladies who offered friendship.

"… Okay."

* * *

Lunch had shortly ended, as for our lovely princes of the kingdom of Hyrule to head to her locker and retrieve her books. Today was Day 8 for Princess Zelda's schedule, and so, it meant that she had to attend French class. Her day would be over in only four periods, and now she had to trudge back home to ask her father for permission of doing all of these fun, social interactions. Her day was just absolutely wonderful for now she would be doing all of her homework, and her day would only be getting worse and worse if she didn't keep up with all of her studies. Fatigue was beginning to come to her mind and body, and now, she wished nothing more, but to sleep. She would carry on, however, since there was a lot more to do in the day. Her reward for rest would be greater and sweeter than it would be, if she were to rest right now. She began pulling out all of her French materials from her locker, when she didn't notice that someone was watching her with very careful eyes. 

Those eyes belonged to the Prince of Altea. He studied her face more, as he was just stricken by all of her fine features. There was something about her aura, which seemed to give off this radiant glow. As if she was a beautiful, pure white gardenia which was in a garden filled with weeds. Marth Lowell pulled out his list of all of the females in the Super Smash Brothers High School, as he realized that the list was only down to two females he hadn't crossed off. The list was now down to three girls. One was this extremely good looking Japanese girl, who had really large breasts, another which was really good flirt and tended to move from boyfriend to boyfriend in less than two weeks, and finally Zelda. However, there was something about Zelda that Marth noticed ever since the first day of school. She wasn't so sluttish, trashy, or superficial. She was different compared to most females at the school. Something about her was so… innocent. So fragile… So natural… So… _pure_. It was as if she was some sort of heavenly swan queen lifted up from the murky, dirty waters of the school and out into fresh air.

He had been meaning to make his move on the Princess of Hyrule for quite some time now, but he knew that there was something about Zelda that he'd have to be diligent about, than to approach her in his normal way. Yet whatever he had to do carefully to gain Zelda's favor, it was worth it. Something as precious as Zelda's heart was like a delicate jewel that only belonged in royal, gentle hands. His feet were moving before his brain, as he smirked to himself more and more with each step he took. He was coming closer to her. He felt as if she was perfection written all over her body, and now... he wanted her.

"Hello, Princess Harkinian," Marth said calmly.

"Gah!" Zelda cried, startled at Marth's voice appearing in front of her.

Zelda just finished putting away all of her books, and was ready to head off to French class. When she shut her locker door, she saw that Marth was right behind her door, leaning against her neighbor's locker with his left hand. She had completely didn't notice that he approached her. Due to the surprise of the school president, she dropped all of her books on the hallways.

"Oh Nayru," the Triforce holder of Wisdom cursed to herself.

She dropped down to her knees, as she slowly began to gather her belongings. She started to collect all of her papers, as she started to slowly ignore Marth's existence for a moment. The Prince of Altea took only one second to have himself get down on the hallway floors, and help Zelda collect her books.

"Here," Marth Lowell of Altea said, as he passed the Princess her blue, French textbook.

"Thank you," The Princess replied, as she took it from him.

After only a bit a few seconds, the Princess collected all of her materials once again from the help of Marth.

"Thank you so much for you help," Zelda replied.

Marth smirked at her. "No problem. It reminds me of the first time we met…"

"… Eh?"

"Oh, you don't remember? The first day of school, you dropped your boobs down the hallways, and-…" Zelda cocked her head to one side in confusion; with an invisible question mark appear above her head.

"_Wait… WHAT!?!?!?!?!?"_ Marth's mind asked.

Did he just say… "you dropped your boobs"?

"_Ooohhhhh… REAL smooth, Marthie boy. You'll get her for sure,"_ Marth told himself again. The Prince of Altea wished to kick himself in the rear end for saying that! He had been too busy looking at Zelda's perfect bosoms to not notice that he should have said "books" rather than "boobs".

"Books. I'm sorry. I meant… books. Not boobs. I have no idea in what mother's hell made me say that!" Marth said in a jokingly way, as he tried to laugh it off. He put his right hand on the back of his neck, and tried to smile about it. It only made it worse. He felt a sweat drop come across the back of his head, as Zelda stared at him.

"_Oh crap. Now she thinks I'm a total perv. Ah well, if I don't get her… I'll be checking out those Playboy bunnies again. At least they have nicer, fuller and bigger boobs than Harkinian's…. Mmmmmmm… Boooooobsss..." _Marth's horny teenager hormones were basically telling him, as his mind was starting to drool at the vision of his collection of Playboy magazines.

But much to his surprise, Zelda smiled sweetly at him. The thought of staring at his Playboy magazines snapped out of his mind, as he smiled back at the Princess. Oh great GODS! Her smile was heavenly! She _was_ perfection! Beautiful. Absolutely stunning, even in that little, cute school uniform. Yet, wait… Why was she still smiling at him for that mistake he just made now? Was she… Yes. For some reason, Marth could sense that the Princess Zelda of Hyrule would slowly raise her dominant hand, without him realizing it, and slap him. However, the Princess did not do anything. Was she just not offended at the fact he was staring at her chest? Or did she just did not know what the term: "boobs" meant? It was probably the latter.

"I'm sorry that I don't remember such a thing. But… Oh wait! Yes! Now I remember! You were the one to help me out on the first day of school! Well, all I can say is… Thank you very much for helping me out a bit that day," Zelda said, as she flushed a little bit for the most popular guy in school to do that sort of thing. The Prince only smirked back at her, after realizing that she had not understood his mistake for saying: "boobs" not "books".

"Anyways, I was wondering, Harkinian, if you were going to Homecoming or not. Are you?" Marth asked. Zelda's eyes widened a bit, for this man whom she have only heard so much details and rumors about from Samus was asking her if she was going to the Homecoming dance. Why was he interested in her going or not anyways?

"Erm… Yes, I do plan to go," she replied slowly.

"Ah, well, that's good. The reason why I'm asking you this is because… I was wondering if you'd like to go with me as a date." Marth smirked playfully, as he patiently waited for her response.

The Princess's eyes widened again, because he had caught her completely off guard with this sort of question. First of all, the Princess had no particular interest in attending a ball with Marth; however, perhaps it would have been good for her reputation in the school. It would also be beneficial for her to at least attend and not be lonely at the dance. Then again, from what she heard from Samus, Marth didn't seem to be a man who'd be a perfect date for her at Homecoming. Though, Samus would be considered as a "biased source" due to her mysterious hatred for the Prince of Altea. After much consideration, she decided to answer his question.

"Erm… Well, I'm not sure. I mean, I certainly was not expecting anyone to ask me out or anything for Homecoming, but erm… I'm still not sure," Zelda answered, as she saw Marth kind of looking disappointed.

It was only then when Zelda realized that if she didn't answer now, she would keep Marth hanging for an answer. Though, if anything, the Princess of Hyrule was taught one important thing. Always be honest with yourself and the people around you. The answer was already clear. Rejection would be made.

"I mean… I apologize, but I think I already know. I'm sorry, but I currently have no interest in being escorted to the Homecoming dance. I'm really sorry, but maybe perhaps… if we get to know each other, I'll consider it next time."

At the sounds of those words, Marth's heart plummeted down to the hallway floor. He had been rejected. Rejected. How was that physically possible? Was he not, one of the most handsome young men in the whole school? Was he not, the smartest, the wittiest, and yet the most popular teenager from his kingdom? He _never_ had been rejected from any type of woman, when it came to asking her out! It didn't make any sense! He was… desired. Loved. Well off. Humorous. Passionate. Kind. Caring. How could any girl not fall for that? Well, maybe _one_ girl, whose name began with an "S" and ended with an "us". The more he stood in front of Zelda, gazing into her innocent, apologetic face, the more frustration and disappointment he felt. He hastily shifted his eyes away from hers, as he glanced down to his left side.

"Oh… Alright then. I understand if you don't wish to go with anyone to the dance," Marth replied, as he started to turn on his heel and leave.

He still did not get it. He was a charmer! He was playful when it came to women, and he could make any girl fall for him less than a second! He had it. All of it. He had the walk, the looks, the posture in his stance, the muscles, the brain, and the desire to win! What girl can't fall for that? He wasn't the class president for nothing! Marth gritted his teeth in anger and sadness, when something he least expected happened.

"Lowell! Wait!"

That angelic voice. Oh, how Marth adored those sound coming from a heavenly princess!

"Lowell, wait up!" Zelda caught up with Marth a little bit down the hallway, as he spun around.

"Look, I know I must have hurt you from rejecting your… proposal. I mean, one of the many reasons for why I declined was that… I hardly know you. It would be wonderful to spend some time together, so that's why…" Zelda said, as her voice started to quiet down. Marth tilted his head to the left side in confusion for what she was going to say next.

"So that's why… I think that I'll dance half of Homecoming with you," Zelda finished, as she smiled. Marth smiled as he finally heard Zelda's answer. For a moment, he could swear that he was jumping up and down in his… pants. He replied by saying:

"Alright, cool."

They smiled for a bit awkwardly, until Marth decided to turn the other way to head to his other class. He skipped (literally **skipped**) down the hallways, to Roy.

"Gee, you're in a really good mood right now," Roy commented, as Marth was all happy dandy.

"She said yes!"

"Eh?"

"I said… 'She said yes!'"

"Marth, that would be too good to be true. What did this whole scenario go like?"

"Alright. So I asked her out to Homecoming at her locker, right?" Marth said, as Roy nodded his head. "So then she first rejected it, and then she said she'd like to get to know me more, so that she'll dance with me for half of the dance!"

"Marth, you're twisting her words here. First of all, she said HALF of the dance. Not the all of the dance, Marth. Don't get the words: "half" and "all" mixed up, because you know that those two words have completely different meanings. Second is that, you shouldn't get your hopes up too much. Remember, she is still getting to know you. Her impression of you could change, you know? Also that… Marth? Marth!"

Roy faced his best friend; only discover that he had his head resting on both of his hands, which were propped up by the nearby windowsill of the hallways. The Prince had stars in his eyes, for he was thinking of that beautiful princess, and a la drool was coming out of the right, bottom corner of his mouth. Roy mushroom sighed, as he also sweat dropped, when he realized that there would be no use into talking Marth out of it. His mind was already set. For now, all the two swordsmen could do was to move on with the day, while Marth gleefully skipped (yes, Marth skips when he's in a really good mood) to class.

* * *

**I swear to f-ing God that the whole: "You dropped your boobs" line was not planned. I accidentally typed out: "boobs" first, rather than "books". I first deleted it, and then I realized it would be hilarious to keep it in there. I probably got it after drinking Starbucks, nuzzling my face against my boyfriend's (while sitting on top of him), and my longing for talking with **_**crystalicios**_** and online groping her boobies. :'(**

**(clears throat) I'm extremely delighted and honored to say that **_**Hello Nessa**_** has been an absolute dear, and drew me a gift/fan art for ****Gardenia****. EDIT: Unfortunately, the link did not work. I don't know why, but ah well. I'll have **_**Hello Nessa**_** give me a new link, once she finishes that drawing:P**

**Thank you very much, once again to **_**Hello Nessa**_** for giving me something out of such kindness. I appreciate it more than anything! - I consider her to be a new, precious friend.**

**Thank you all once again for reading! Dropping a review is highly appreciated by me!**

**Love,**

**-BKP**


	10. missunderstood

**Yays. School is out for me. More time to update and maybe more time with my boyfriend.**

**Disclaimer: Read the first chapter. From here onward, I'm not going to bother with the whole: "Disclaimer" thing.**

* * *

"**I hid my trembling hand  
Because their sympathy was so hollow**

**I don't get warmed  
By the half-hearted and artificial warmth  
I rather want them to shut their eyes  
Until I break into pieces without a trace**

**I don't want to hear nor speak  
The fine words any longer  
The pain will be getting worse  
So I just accept it**" **- ****(miss)understood by Ayumi Hamasaki**

**Chapter 10 – (miss)understood**

French class was just about to begin in a few minutes, when the MRL presidents were discussing some very important matters, dealing with mainly our three beloved heroines. Fortunately, no one was in the classroom for anyone to notice the MRL talking amongst themselves. Who in the world knows what happens when the MRL begin to talk about sabotage in public? Ultra suspension straight from the Master Hand. They were all crowded around Megan's seat, with Megan Anderson sitting down, and her two main minions standing around her, like crows ready to feast on their meat.

"Megan… When are going to strike? I mean, I don't see why you said about… using that _thing_ you showed us, if we're not going to use it now!" Caitlin complained, as she filed her nails. She put away her nail filer, as she faced Megan again. "What's the point? We're just sitting around doing absolutely nothing."

"Caity, we can't do anything right now. First of all, what use would it be if I were to just use our ONE major attack blow on when Samus is harmless to us, right now? It would be a waste. Even though it would be a good idea to use it now, it's not going to work. I can just tell. We have to wait. That's the only thing we can do," Megan replied with her arms crossed, as she glanced up at both of her friends.

"But when will the time be correct, though? That's something I'd like to know," Rachael's voice questioned.

"Well, a question for the both of you. What is the point of this sabotage that we are planning?" Megan asked.

No one answered that question, for only Megan knew the answer.

"It's to bring down Samus and/or Zelda when they get too close to our soon-to-be-boyfriends. So this means we must wait for a time when either of them to start a close relationship. Of course, we're not going to let them get _too_ close. But when things start to get a little serious. Once that happens, boom. That's when we whip it out. Because, it's no use trying to bring either of those two bitches down when it appears that we have nothing against them, right? Besides, we'd only get a suspension or something from the Master Hand if that sort of thing were to happen," Megan reasoned with the other two blondes. The two blondes faced each other for a second, as they looked back into the brunette's eyes.

"Megan, you are a genius," Caitlin stated, as she wily smiled at her.

Megan smirked back at her, as all three of the MRL presidents had devious looks upon their faces. They all knew what would happen when they would ruin Samus' reputation. All three of these girls had a strong hatred for Samus, particularly what happened to them a year ago. She had meddled around in their affairs with Peach, and they all wished that she would just disappear from the scene. Like Marth, they all thought that a former druggie, ex-motorcyclist did not belong in the Super Smash Brothers High School. She had nothing to achieve.

"Wait… Aren't you worried about Peach?" Rachael asked Megan.

"Why would I be? She's harmless. Have you seen the way she holds her head and the ways her eyes scan around the room before she enters? It shows that she's weak. She's so weak! Hahahaha! I laugh at her. I never thought that what we did would be so effective. I mean, yes, I did think that it would work at her. But look at her! There's no way for her to recover! It's so pathetic! And who knew that she would become friends with that lowly creature named Samus? Hah! She's better off alone, suffering with Daisy! Oops! That was a mistake. I forgot… _Daisy_ can't help Peach! Daisy goes off to another school and isn't regularly informed with what goes on in Peach's life!" Megan started to laugh manically, as both blondes smirked. It wasn't until a few seconds, when Rachael realized something and decided to mention it to Megan.

"But she may _seem_ harmless, but we don't know for sure if she is or not. Looks are deceiving…" Rachael commented, as Megan shot her a dirty look telling her to shut up.

"Oh come on. She won't do anything. I feel pretty positive about this. There's nothing that she can really do. But it's fun to just… poke fun at her. You know? It always entertains me to see how she reacts to her environments at this state. But what we should really focus right now is on Samus and Zelda. Samus is kind of getting close to Marth. I don't like that. She may become his new best friend or something. And Zelda? Look at her. First, she bumps into Link, and now Marth asked her out to Homecoming!"

"What do you mean?" Caitlin asked.

"Julie just told me, when she was walking out of Algebra that she saw Marth at Zelda's locker asking if she would go to Homecoming with him."

"And what did she say? Did she accept!?!"

"No. Thankfully. She said no, but that she'll dance with them for half of the dance."

"So there's a 50 percent chance of you dancing with him for the rest of the dance!" Caitlin squealed in delight for her friend.

"Yes," Megan replied, as she smiled to herself. "Once that stupid, fucking Princess leaves Marth as soon as possible, that's when I'll make my move. Marth will fall in love with me by the time the dance is over! He'll be mine… I just know it!"

"Do you plan to punish her?" Caitlin inquired slowly, as she shifted her eyes around the room to see if anyone was coming in. Luckily for the MRL, not even Mrs. Kevorkian was coming in early to the classroom.

"Who?"

"Zelda, I mean."

Megan smirked at that comment, as she knew exactly what to do.

"Maybe. I may find something out for that nasty, little Princess. It all depends on what my dad digs up for me. If I can't find anything, we may have to attack her straight on. Remember, all is fair in love and war."

* * *

Just after Megan said that, the bell rang. It meant that the small break in between the classes was over, and now it was time to head to class. Both Caitlin and Rachael decided to take their seats before class began. Students came pouring in, as they all took their seats. All three of the MRL presidents noted Zelda sauntering in the room, as she had a dreamy look smacked all over her face for some reason. They also noticed Peach slowly stepping in the classroom, as if the tiles of the floor contained hot acid of hate and insecurity. After Peach walked in the room to take her seat, she was followed by Mrs. Kevorkian. 

"Settle down, settle down. We've got a lot of material to cover today, so please open your textbooks to page 34. I'm going to have some of you read a paragraph or two from the article in your book. So be ready to pronounce some new vocabulary from your vocab sheet in this article," Mrs. Kevorkian said in a steady, serious voice.

Some people in the class groaned with disgust, mostly because they all wished to go home at the moment, rather than read a pointless article out loud. A quick shuffle of textbooks and page turning came about in the classroom, as the class looked at the beginning of the article.

"Let's begin. Peach, would you do the favor and read the first paragraph, so we could all follow along?" Mrs. Kevorkian asked the blonde Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom.

It was then when Zelda Harkinian noted that Peach, who had her eyes down at her seat, slowly lifted her head up in terror. Peach nervously looked at textbook, filled with all of those French sentences from the article of her textbook. She wondered how people were going to react when she would start to use her vocal chords again today. She was already aware of what position she was in right now, and she was already scared to see how people were going to care about what she said and how she said it. What if her voice cracked? She already knew she was in a hostile environment due to the MRL, and now… she couldn't just deny her teacher's request. She wanted to set a good impression of herself to Mrs. Kevorkian.

"A-a-afin… d'en… savoir…"

Small, devious giggles came about from most of the club members of the MRL, and even some from the boys in her French class. Peach struggled to read out loud.

"…. Savoir… un peu plus sur les diff-…."

More laughter. Everyone was laughing at Peach attempting to read. She felt as if each word she was pronouncing in her best French accent was as if she was jumping over fences in her mouth. It was as if Peach was sputtering out words that were not even words that had meaning at all. It was as if most of the French class was watching her drown in a pool of hardship and depression. Yet, instead of helping her, they were laughing at her. But then again, Peach knew that she would have to learn to swim out of this dilemma by herself.

"Différents artistes…"

The MRL presidents started to giggle more and more with each word that Peach started to pronounce in French. She didn't want to be here. Instead, she wished to stay locked up in her room, and not let anyone come in. She was obviously struggling in school, and she felt so weak and helpless now. The whole world seemed to be against her, since everyone was laughing at her. What did she do wrong? Was she pronouncing all of the words wrong in French? She wanted to cry, leave school, and never show her face again to anyone in her grade. Zelda noticed the look on Peach's face, as she could see that Peach was on the verge of tears. Mrs. Kevorkian noticed the look on Peach's face, as she heard the other blonde stutter in her words and pause for a bit.

"Girls," Mrs. Kevorkian said in a very stern, warning tone of voice. "Save your giggling for after class, and let Peach read. Go on, Peach, dear. Continue reading."

"….ar- ar-… artistes?"

Peach paused, as she felt there were small, electric nervous vibes going between her veins and muscles. She heard some more giggling coming from the MRL presidents. Mrs. Kevorkian sent them a death glare, to silence them. It worked, but Peach knew deep inside that their jig wasn't up. Those girls thrived to see Peach suffer. All because she was with the person she thought she loved the most? Why should she be in pain for that? She was going to break very soon. She knew it. The pink princess was well aware of the state she was in. She was more fragile, more hostile, and more scared of everything around. This was killing her. It's strange on how comments and what people thought of her made Peach paranoid. She knew that she shouldn't care. Yet, sometimes it's hard to get away from people who she thought were nice. She would try to be strong. She already had made improvement today by asking Zelda and Samus over to her house.

"Girls, stop that. There is nothing humorous in this article and there's nothing funny when Peach reads," Mrs. Kevorkian warned again. She turned to Peach, as she smiled sweetly at her. "Go on, Peach sweetie. Read more."

"Artistes japonais présents à-" Those little breaks of laughter came again from the east side of the room.

"Girls! That's it! I've had it! Detention for all three of you! I already warned you three times that I wished for it to be silent when Peach would read. You will stay after school today for half an hour and answer sections A, B, and D during that period," Mrs. Kevorkian snapped, as the three girls had disgusted looks upon their faces. But they could care less about an old, crabby teacher like Mrs. Kevorkian.

The French teacher faced the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom and smiled. "Continue on, Peach."

"…"

"Peach?"

"…"

"Peach, dear. Continue."

Nothing. There was nothing that Peach could do. She knew that she shouldn't have come to school today. This was exactly why she hated her high school so much. She despised the environment she was in, and everything that was around her. She knew those specific, three girls were constantly talking about her behind her back. She was fully aware of the horrible things they would always talk about. She loathed this place of both genders of where females have to impress males. Where people always spread rumors about each other, that dreadful place. At times, she wished that she was with Daisy once again, and that she attended the same school. According to what Daisy told her about, her school was just like one big family, where everybody minded their own business. There was no need to impress anyone there, since the school only consisted of females. To her, it sounded wonderful. But Peach's parents weren't too keen on the idea of switching schools.

"Peach?"

She was ready to cry. She wasn't feeling well. She felt as if she was mentally disabled and that she wasn't fit for school. Princess Peach of the Mushroom Kingdom was fully aware of the low grades she was receiving. She knew it had nothing to do with her intelligence, but more of her work ethic. She couldn't bring herself up together to get the grades she wasn't, and she was frustrated. She hated school so much, that she found herself not being able to properly do homework or participate in class. She wanted to forget about school. Peach wished to always be in her own, little world where there were no worries about this sort of thing. She was only becoming more and more confused with what she was doing in high school. She had not understood that sentence she just read out of her French textbook, and neither did she seem to have her brain soak in any of the information from her earlier classes.

"Peach, darling, are you alright?"

Mrs. Kevorkian placed a hand on her shoulder in comfort, and it only made her feel worse. She didn't get any sleep last night, since she was so worried about school and everything she was going through. Her paranoia was something that kept her going through the night. She couldn't eat, because she was worried about what people thought of her. She remembered what it was like two years ago. Everything was normal. She wasn't in this state, and she didn't have to deal with all of this peer pressure, work, and life. Why couldn't everything turn back the way she wanted to? Why did life have to be this way for her?

Zelda noticed the tears in Princess Peach's eyes as the gushed out and slowly started to drip onto the textbook, turning the pages into crinkled, yellow butterfly winged paper. The presidents of the MRL just broke out in even more fits of laughter at the fact she was crying, which had her weep even more. Mrs. Kevorkian shot a glare at the girls, as she finally snapped:

"GIRLS! I'm extending your detention for two weeks now!"

The trio of the MRL fan girls glared at the French teacher for being wicked, as they just rubbed it off by having their eyes move in a circular motion. Mrs. Kevorkian finished her death glares at the MRL presidents, as she sweetly faced Peach. The French teacher attempted to make Peach feel better by also rubbing her back, but it didn't work. Peach just started to sob hysterically, for she wasn't ready for all of this. She felt as if she was being cornered in by the white walls of the classroom, with all of the pressure and insecurity. This is why she hated being in Nintendo City. She hated being a princess, and she definitely hated everything around her. She was hoping that, perhaps, this year she would finally be able to accomplish a great achievement and be proud of it. Princess Peach Toadstool was always fond of chances and different opportunities. Yet, she made her move too late. She was too optimistic about this new year in the Super Smash Brothers High School, and now there was nothing to do about it.

From across the room, Zelda observed Peach's face, as Mrs. Kevorkian asked Peach if she needed to go to the office or nurse. The Mousy Princess just shook her head repeatedly, as Mrs. Kevorkian continued to question about her state being, Zelda didn't understand anything. There was something about Peach which made her give up too easily. She remembered earlier that day when Mrs. Pierce allowed the class to do their Biology homework in class, and Peach became stuck on one problem. She stared at the problem for a good five minutes, with no answer coming to her brain. Instead of asking for help, she just completely ignored the question and didn't try to make the most of the class time of doing her homework in class rather than at home. She just packed up to go to the next class.

Zelda frowned once again, as she couldn't understand why Peach wasn't able to pull herself together at times. She was inconsistent with her work. Zelda swore that she saw the number 95 in red pen circled at the top of one of Peach's English quizzes. Yet when the English teacher passed back another quiz a 36 was circled again in red atop of the paper. There was potential in this princess. She certainly seemed to have enough intelligence to stand on her own, and be her own person. Though, there was some kind of fear creeping about in the Princess' body like disgusting, black beetles crawling about inside, around her heart. It was if Peach hadn't taken a good look at herself in the mirror for a long time, and allowing herself to become filthy with failure. She was aware that Peach was showing someone else to her, and not her true self. There was a faint light in the Mousy Princess' eyes, which was sure to have people know that she lived freely once. Zelda Harkinian swore, to herself, that by all means she would help Princess Peach regain her normal self.

* * *

"How about this one?" 

Samus frowned at the dress, as she tried to imagine Zelda making a dramatic entrance at the dance… looking like a complete red, artificial cherry. That idea would be sure to have all of the men staring at her as if she was some sort of tramp, attempting to be sexy. Not so good for a new girl, who wished to impress people with her reputation. Samus shook her head vigorously.

"Dudette, I seriously think that bright red with really big white ruffles at the front of the dress is a REALLY bad idea."

Zelda sighed, for this was the marking period of the twentieth dress she asked Samus about. It had already been three hours since school was out, and Samus had taken her out to the downtown side of Nintendo City to go dress shopping for her. She admitted, riding on Samus' motorcycle for the first time in her life, made her a bit nauseous and scared out of her wits, but now she was just feeling light headed from staring at all of these dresses.

"Hey, Samus?"

"Hm? What's up?"

"Well, how come you aren't looking around for dresses for yourself?"

Samus smiled at Zelda, for she already knew what she would wear.

"I've already got my outfit planned out. Don't worry about me, though! I'll be fine. You're just gonna have to wait to see what I'll look like for Homecoming, eh?"

"Erm. Alright. Oooh… This one looks cute. What do you think?"

"… That dress looks as if it would fit a walking stick. I mean, it's really pretty. Sapphire blue with silver lining? It would look beautiful on you since it would really bring out your pretty eyes, but it's too big for you, and your waist certainty isn't THAT small."

Zelda frowned in disappointment, as she tossed the dress back on the rack. She hated the fact that all of the beautiful dresses were either too big or too small for her. If there was something that was her size, it would either be too gaudy or too plain. Nothing seemed to fit her style for the dance.

"This is becoming hopeless… There is nothing here in this store I'd like to wear at Homecoming!" Zelda wailed very loudly, that the nearby customers could hear and see her flailing her hands in the air.

"Shhh!! Quiet down, Z! We're in a department store! There are people here who want to shop in peace! And you don't mind if I call you Z from now on, do you?" She shook her head. "Good. Anyways, dudette, stop worrying. We'll find a nice dress for you to try on in no time!"

Zelda frowned at that thought. "But what if it doesn't look good on me? I want to look absolutely… well, perfect for the ball."

Samus quirked an eyebrow as she placed a slutty, black dress back on the rack.

"Oh? Is there someone you want to impress at the Homecoming dance?" As swift as a ninja, Samus slide towards Zelda's side, nudged her with her right elbow a couple of times, and winked. "Who's this hottie that I'm not informed of?"

Zelda's face fell to a shade of bright pink, as she quickly averted her eyes to the floor of the department store. The memory of Marth asking her out to the Homecoming dance already flashed in her mind, as she blushed even more about that thought. Had he really thought of her as being an attractive young woman? The idea of Marth feeling that was flattering, yet she wasn't interested. She was still embarrassed at that fact she had took pity on him for her to be his date for half of the dance.

"N-n-nobody!"

She squeaked out with her eyes closed. She couldn't tell Samus. Especially not now. She had made a new best friend, and yet… she knew that some part of Samus was going to hate her for explaining why she was fussing over the dress for Homecoming. Samus' smile only widened in delight. She was feeling all hyper and excited now that she knew that there was some sort of new drama happening in the high school year already.

"Come on. Tell me!"

"… You really want to know?"

"Yep."

"Even though this person goes against your beliefs?"

"Yep?" Samus hesitated for a moment, as she wondered what in Nintendo City's group of abandoned kittens was Zelda talking about.

"Okay… So well, yeah. I'm going to dance with this specific guy for about… half of the Homecoming dance."

The bounty huntress quirked an eyebrow and a half smile on the left side of her face, with interest and please about this new information.

"Go on. Tell me more about this person," she replied as she started shuffling through dresses on another rack of the store.

"Well… Yeah. There's nothing to it. I mean… I only said: 'Yes', mainly because I felt sorry for the poor guy."

She was avoiding the name. Samus needed a name to know who this person was! She tried to keep her cool, by continuing to focus on finding a dress that Zelda could wear to the Homecoming dance.

"What's his name?"

"Erm…" The Triforce holder's voice went a tad bit softer as she said: "Prince Marth Lowell of Altea."

Samus almost practically dropped the purple, beaded dress she was holding onto, as she heard Zelda's reply. A fore headed vein appeared on the side of her head, and her eyes turned white with anger. The huntress quickly stepped to her right side and faced Zelda.

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!?!?!"

She screamed with her right fist clenched in a ball, and her brandishing her fist in the air with anger. Almost all of the females in the formal dress section of the department store were staring at Miss Aran's outburst, in complete shock and annoyance. Even Zelda herself was surprised to see such anger on Samus' face. A stab of regret bit into her sides as she knew that she shouldn't have told Samus about this in the first place.

"Samus, keep your voice down! We're in a store!"

"Sorry. But, how the fuck could this happen?"

"Well… Erm… How do you want me to explain it?" Zelda asked.

"What the heck is that supposed to mean?"

"I mean… How did you want me to go about telling you? I was already kind of feeling bad, knowing that I had to tell you something like this."

"Why would you feel bad about telling me something similar to this?"

"… Because I thought you'd hate me if I told you."

Samus' anger softened from hearing the news about Zelda dancing half of the dance with Marth, as she faced Zelda. Zelda's eyes averted Samus' in shame, as she looked down at her feet. Miss Samus Aran let out a mushroom sigh, as she began to explain her feelings.

"Z, that's silly. I wouldn't hate you just because you're going out with a guy that I strongly hate. I'd still be friends with you no matter what. I don't judge people by their actions. Only the way they treat me, and the way they treat others."

"Why though?"

"Why what?"

"Why do you hate him? I mean, I'm not practically interested in Lowell, but I've always just wondered why. Hate is such a strong word, Samus. And I'm sure you don't hate Lowell, that you only just strongly dislike him."

"Well, what's not there to hate about him? He's a freakin' playboy, who jumps from one girl to another. He discriminates against people like me, and thinks he's all that. He lies, he cheats, and he's something… that's… UNFORGIVABLE!"

"But what has he ever done to you specifically?" Zelda asked.

Samus fell silent for a moment, as she tried to collect her thoughts. Perhaps, it had something to do with her past. Marth not only discriminated against her because of someone who she was in the past, and the social position she was in. Who couldn't hate him for that? Yet… Samus remembered when the first met, he wasn't all that bad. So what right did she have to hate him, just because they both got at each other at the wrong time? Then again, Samus was fickle. Once she disliked someone, it would be hard for her to change her mind. She was stubborn as a bull, and didn't wish to be swayed over by seemingly harmless things like social status in school and popularity.

"Well… I mean… I don't know. I just hate him," Samus ended abruptly. Before Zelda could continue on about asking her why she hated Marth so much, Samus pulled out a dress for Zelda to try.

"Try this one on," she demanded. Zelda sighed heavily, as she picked up the dress, and started to head for the dressing room to her right.

"Fine, I got it."

Samus smirked at herself for being able to distract Zelda's mind from Marth. The young blonde woman, also sighed in stress as well, to know how tiring this was for her.

"How do I look?"

She asked as Samus turned around to face her from the dress rack.

"Uhh…. No. Green doesn't suit you. At least… not neon, lime green. You look like… well, a big, fat lime. Ew. Limes," Samus began to say, as Zelda quirked another eyebrow.

Samus shuffled through another set of dresses on the end of the clothing rack, as she finally spotted something pretty for Zelda.

"Ooooh! Look at this one, Z! Isn't this cute? I think this would look perfect on you!"

Samus held up the dress a little bit higher, as Zelda's eyes looked down at the dress. It was a creamy ivory dress with the top part almost styled like a halter with a darker shade of ivory and two satin ribbons tying up in the back. It didn't show off Zelda's breasts, because the base of the two ribbons was in the center up of the dress. The design was beaded with several silver beads to blind the eyes of several men with lust for the princess. The dress wasn't too long; for it would only be cut off about an inch away from the Princess' knees. The hem of the dress was lined a flowery lace pattern of the same shade of ivory made from the top part of the dress. It wasn't too formal, and neither was it too casual. Perhaps, this would be the perfect dress for Zelda to wear for Homecoming.

"Hmmm… It looks cute, but it kind of looks kind of big?"

Samus quickly raised the hanger for the dress a bit upwards, towards her, and had it face her for a second.

"What on earth are you talking about?!? I checked the size! It's SHOULD fit you. Now, come on! What are you waiting for? Try it on!"

"Um, but-!" Samus grabbed Zelda's shoulders and spun her around.

"No buts, now come on! Try iiiiiiitttt!!!" Samus squealed, as she pushed her towards the direction of the dressing room.

"Alright, fine! I got it!"

Zelda briskly sauntered straight ahead to try on the dress, as Samus smiled at herself for her accomplished work. For her own particular interest, the bounty huntress browsed around more on the rack where she found Zelda's dress. She picked up one bright orange dress, and admired the design. As she looked a further bit more up, something caught her attention. There were some people in the shoe section, whom were debating whether or not to buy a specific pair of high heels.

* * *

A young couple. A man with a shade of deep brown hair, like milk chocolate, and a woman with layer styled, blonde hair. They looked too familiar to Samus. She didn't see the faces of the two, but she recognized their body and bone structure from their backs all too well. For a moment, Samus debated in her mind whether she should greet these people who she thought she knew. But another part of her was telling her to not to. Yet, another part of Samus was coming back to her. Memories of what happened in the past were striking her mind again in such a short amount of time. She noticed the young couple was starting to leave the shoe section of the department store. As is she was in a trance, she put the dress back onto the rack, as she quickly made her way to catch up with them. With her speed walking skills, Samus tapped both the shoulders of the man and the young woman. 

"Jackie?" she said.

The young couple turned around, and a pain of stupidly stung Samus' insides.

"Excuse me?" the man asked.

"Eh heh… I apologize. Sorry, you two aren't the people who I thought you were," Samus felt the back of her head sweat drop. The woman smiled at her for a moment.

"Well, I hope you will find the people you are looking for," she commented, and she smiled.

Samus stared at her with wonder for a moment, with the woman was still smiling. She was very pretty just like that person she thought she saw. Her face was different, yet Samus could tell for some reason, their kindness was the same. Did they not notice the Kansai accent she had when speaking? It was just as if they accepted her for no reason. Most of the people in public, who first heard the words from the way Samus spoke, they would start to treat with her disrespect. Even if it was shop keepers to ordinary, everyday people. Though, the young couple both smiled in a reassurance, as they turned their backs on Samus and left.

* * *

"Erm… Samus?" a voice peeped out. 

Samus turned around to see Zelda, poking her head out of the door of the dressing room.

"D-d-does it look nice?"

She stepped out in the more open light, where she appeared to be extraordinary to Samus. It was if an angel was descending from the heavens, and down to earth. As if Zelda was an angel with the radiance in her face. The smile in her face was something so beautiful and wonderful just like an angel. Samus Aran could just envision how ravishing Zelda would appear, once she got herself all dolled up and ready for the dance.

"Oh my God… Dudette, you look… stunning. And you're just… normal! Heck, if I was a lesbian, I'd totally do you!"

Zelda's eyes turned white with surprise, as if she had seen a ghost, and her soul had escape through her mouth.

"… What? Stop looking at me like that! I was fooling with you, you know?" Samus said, as Zelda shook her head and brushed off that comment.

"Anyways, we should go to the cashier and buy it! Since you'll look SO sexy, Z."

Zelda said nothing.

"Um, RIGHT. But I need footwear!"

"… Oh yeah. You can't go to Homecoming without shoes! You need really nice, stable high heeled shoes so that your heel doesn't break off from the shoe. That is, if you wish to go around with yourself limping around like a badly wounded dog."

The duo of blonds waltzed over to the shoe section of the department store, browsing through shoe rack through the displays of fancy, expensive shoes by well known fashion companies such as Dirtt, Marissa Klein, and Wrathington.

"Hmmm… What do you say for shoes? Personally, I'd go looking for silver, dress shoes, mainly because silver heels can go with any dress. What do you think?" Samus said, as she and Zelda were circling around a high heeled, strapped silver pair of shoes on display right in front of the footwear section. Zelda frowned.

"Errr… Silver shoes would be nice, though, I was hoping to find some shoes where it would match my dress. Ivory-white. Or somewhere along those lines. I just kind of want shoes to match my dress," Zelda replied, as Samus nodded.

"Okay, I understand that. So I'm going to head to the right of the shoe section and see what I can find over there, okay? You can head to the left."

"Alright."

After more than 20 minutes of searching from almost every inch of the shoe section, Zelda and Samus were in no luck. There had not been a single shoe which fitted Zelda's shoe size, and neither did it match the color of Zelda dress or would look nice with it. It was absolutely frustrating for both of them, since they had just spent the longest period of time finding Zelda the perfect dress, and now… They were forced into turmoil of complete boringness of looking at hideous looking shoes for a dance. It wasn't long before that both of them were in the center of the shoe section, and they were both looking at the shoes on the shoe rack which was in the exact center of the shoe section. Zelda being on the left side of the huge display, and Samus on the right.

"Samus… I've just realized I wanted to talk to you about something very important today," Zelda talked through the rack, as she kept on browsing around for shoes. as her words seeped through the many cracks of the rack and to Samus' ears.

"Oh? What was it?" Samus asked, as her words seeped through the many cracks of the rack and to Zelda's long, elegant point Hylian ears.

"Well, it's about Peach," Zelda said again, as she hesitated.

"… Go on."

"Today during French class, Mrs. Kevorkian requested that Peach read out loud to the whole class an article from the textbook."

"Yeah? So? Well, I mean… Participating in class is probably no biggie to Peach or anyone, but I mean… she's not very good at it."

"Hm, true. Though, it seemed as if there was something… _wrong_ with her while reading out loud. And there were people… _laughing_ at her while she was reading! What in the name of Nayru would people do such a thing! A thought like that, provokes me to report it to the principal!" Zelda exclaimed furiously, as she was gripping the steel of the shoe rack firmly to unleash her anger.

"Don't. You can't do anything about it. First of all, I know you're pissed, and heck, even though I'm not showing it, mainly because I'm really tired now, but I'm pissed too. Let me guess who those people were laughing at Peach… the MRL?"

Zelda nodded her head, as Samus peered through a pair of flats to see her head bobbing up and down.

"I thought so," Samus stated knowledgeably.

"What is her deal with them, anyways? She doesn't seem to be the type to mess around with other people's businesses."

"Of course, she's not. Peach would never do that. However, I'm not sure. You have to be aware, Z, that I've only been friends with Peach for about a year now. She still hasn't fully opened up to me. She was like this when I first met her. She was always like this whenever the MRL was around. But of course, I don't think her personality was always like this. There was probably a time when she was just… well, normal. But I don't know. She's puzzle, Zelda. She probably feels that she's given enough pieces to us or maybe even to herself to fit everything together. But no. She hasn't. Instead, there are still a lot of missing pieces that she and we need to figure everything out. Though, I admit. I was so happy when she finally asked me over to house, that I could've cried," Samus said fondly, as she looked down at the pair of shoes she was looking at. She smiled to herself softly, as she remembered the other day when Peach asked her to come over.

"That brings me to my next question…. How did you become friends with her?" Zelda asked, as she shuffled through another batch of shoes.

"Me? Hah! She and I… well, technically. I wouldn't say that she thinks much of me of a friend as I do with her. During the summer before school started, I found her in a little… mess. I was on my way back from the airport after seeing a good ol' friend off to another country, when I found her being tormented by these kids in our school. I uh-… helped. I promised her if she needed any help, she could always come to me. She brushed me off though. Very coldly, but that didn't stop me… But then again… I dunno! I mean, let's see… Well, I entered high school, and I was thinking: 'Huh, there's no one here that I know, and they all seem to know each other pretty well with their little cliques and all, so… why don't I hang out with that chickie I saved the other day!?!'" Samus exclaimed, as Zelda raised an eyebrow.

"Interesting."

"But like I said, all I know is that the MRL have always given her a hard time. The reason why nobody has been able to do anything about them is the fact that they are powerful in not only the school, but also just in Nintendo City. Megan Anderson's father works directly for the head government of the city. He's one of those stupid, arrogant people that care so much about their reputation and their family's reputation. That's why he always does stuff to make sure that Megan is doing well in school with no tricks up her sleeves, and makes sure that he can get away with it. They're all rich, disgusting, and play dirty. They are scumbags and women of sin. Actually, to be honest… Nobody has been able to report these things to the principal, mainly because we can never reach him."

"Why not?" Zelda asked, as she inspected a potential pair of shoes that she could buy.

"Hmm… No. I don't like the style of these shoes," the Princess of Hyrule commented to herself. "But go on."

"Well, mainly because we have to see the retarded guidance council first, then the vice, and finally the stupid principal! I mean, guidance thinks that we are just going through angsty, frustrated teen years! They believe we can solve all of our problems by  
"communicating like true, pure adults"! What kind of bullshit explanation is that?!? I'm SO not going through any angst or frustration… Well, frustration for Peach, but nothing else! Guidance also probably is bribed and blackmailed by Megan's father to keep their mouths shut, since I know that guidance also reported to the principal once about the MRL doing nasty stuff to Peach. They received some punishment. A week of detention."

"Have they ever harmed anyone else besides Peach?"

"No, not really. I mean, maybe me. I know Megan Anderson hates me, because she fears me."

"Why does she fear you? If she has so much power, then why?"

Samus smirked at that question.

"Because I was able to beat the living shit out of her once, and I can do it again. I was also a former member of the toughest female motorcyclist out here in Nintendo City. But that's another story."

"So what can we do to help Peach?" Zelda asked. "Because I really care for her! I really do… I just don't want her to be hurt anymore."

"I know what you mean, but that's not going to work. I've tried. I tried to help Peach the best I can, but no matter what… I've realized that it's not my fault. And it's not your fault either."

"Eh?"

"In fact, it's no one's fault that Peach is picked on. It's her own fault. She lacks the inner strength to fight away the MRL and do what she can with it. She's more powerful than she thinks. She believes that she can never become the Queen of the Mushroom Kingdom, because she will never be with that sort of attitude."

Zelda was absolutely silent with intrigue, as Samus continued on.

"She needs to discover her own inner strength, because we can't do that shit for her! She's a freakin' princess! How do you expect a bird to fly when we try to fly for them? The answer is you _can't_. You have to let Peach learn how to fly for herself," Samus stated, as a pair of shoes caught her eye. "Ooh! These look perfect for you!"

"Really? Show me!" Zelda quickly exclaimed, excited that they had finally found a pair of shoes for her to wear.

They both stepped out of the aisles between the shoe racks, as Samus lifted above Zelda's head a pair of creamy white shoes. The shoes seemed to be made out of satin, as they felt smooth and soft as Zelda ran her fingers over it. They had a daisy, beaded design around the open part where it would display the open top part of the wearer's foot and covered only the toes, with vines encircling it all around, until it reached the end. On the back part near the heel area, there the daisy pattern was continued through the left and right side of the high heels, having a large beaded daisy on directly the back of the heel. The heels were fairly thick enough to support Zelda, and would be perfect to not snap while she danced.

"Hmmm… The only problem is that it's a size eight. It's too big for me. I'm a size six." Zelda replied sadly, as Samus frowned a bit.

"Hopefully, they'll have a smaller size. Hold up for a moment."

She grabbed the footwear from Zelda's hands without allowing her to say another word. Samus briskly walked toward the service counter in the far middle of the shoe department. Samus let an irritated sigh escape her mouth and even shifted her body to her right in annoyance, as she discovered the worker to have her back turned and reading a magazine.

"Miss!" Samus clearly said, annoyed.

The worker spun around, and as soon as Samus saw the face of the worker, she almost dropped, not only shoes in her hands, but her jaw as well.

"Well, HIYA, ARAN! I'm surprised to see that you're not buying a 34 C cup lace, gel padded bra!"

That blasted, obsessed breast lover! Mariam Ahmed!

"… Ahmed. It's lovely to see you outside of school, but heya, dudette, I want you to find me a size six for THESE-," Samus shoved the shoes into Mariam's face so close, that Mariam even bended her head back to avoid the shoes touching her nose. "shoes. I need a size six of these shoes, dammit! Like… NOW!"

"Well, I don't know if we have anymore…" Mariam said, as she hesitated for a moment, and looked up at Samus with a smirk. "Because my boss said that I could have a pair of six of Wrathington Ivory Classics Number 3092, if I worked over time today."

As Samus stopped holding up the high heels, an arm length away from Mariam and her, listened closely. Mariam switched her latest copy of Plastic Girl! magazine in her left hand, as she leaned over the counter to inform Samus on some pretty special details.

"You see, a pair of Wrathington Ivory Classics Number 3092 is a VERY popular for Homecoming dances all across Nintendo City, especially since they showed up in this copy of Plastic Girl!, which I was just reading thirty seconds ago. And uh- I'm afraid we might be sold out…"

"Oh, come on! Please tell me you have at least ONE more pair," Samus complained to Mariam.

"Sorry, but no. And I have to say… I like those shoes as much as any girl would."

"Okay, Ahmed. Do me a favor… Shut your mouth for a moment, and before you start complimenting on my boobs, close your eyes." Mariam did as she was told. "Look _deep_ inside your heart and what does it say?"

"It says that I should grope your boobies now, and dry hump your legs like crazy."

"… Okay, besides that."

"Mmm… I'm envisioning you in hardcore Vivian's Secret lingerie noooowww…"

"… Just open your goddamn eyes now, you perv!" Samus almost screamed. Mariam opened her eyes to Samus and winked at her. "My Gods! You're such a pervert!"

"Heh. Takes one to know one!" Mariam retorted, as she coyly smiled at Samus.

"Let me guess who that pervert is… Lowell?" Samus said, as Mariam nodded. "I thought so."

Mariam sighed heavily, before adding something else.

"Alright, look here, dearie."

"_Dearie!?!? Since when does Ahmed start to call me a dearie!? Goddamnit, why must this girl always act as if she's lesbo with me!?!?" _Samus' inner self complained.

"Here's the deal. I'll give you my pair of Wrathington Ivory Classics Number 3092, if and only if… you allow me to go to Homecoming with you."

"No fucking way."

"Deal is off then!" Mariam said, as she flipped open to another page in Plastic Girl! magazine and continued reading.

"Gah! Okay, okay, okay! But why?"

Mariam squealed with delight.

"Yays!" The hyper, breast lover girl exclaimed. As Mariam went quiet for a second to clear her throat. "Parents. They don't want me to go to the dance alone. They think I'll get raped if I'm going to just hang around the dance. I swear, I won't cause any trouble."

"But aren't your friends going with you?"

"Yes, but I felt the need to come up with a deal just now, because it would be useless if I didn't come up with a deal right now and gave you my shoes for no reason!"

Samus slapped her forehead.

"So, are you going to the dance with me?"

"Nope!" Mariam chirped, as she went back to reading her fashion magazine. Samus wished to bash her head against the wall at this moment, and she started to envision strangling Mariam right this instant…

* * *

"Alright, so that'll be ¥ 3,000 for the shoes and ¥ 5,000 for the dress," Mariam told Zelda and Samus. 

Zelda was shocked at the amount of money that Mariam had told her, as she slowly opened her wallet and placed a ¥ 10,000 note on the counter. She slid the bank note towards Mariam, as she gladly accepted it, pressed a few buttons on the cashier, and a small "ding!" was heard. She placed the returned amount of money in Zelda's open hand.

"Exactly ¥ 2,000 note in return! Thank you so much for your hospitality!" Mariam stated, as she formally bowed. Samus rolled her eyes, for she was leaning on her right side of her body, on the edge of the counter, toothpick in her mouth.

"Dudette, seriously. What the hell was with that pointless conversation earlier!?!" Samus barked.

"Have a nice day, Harkinian! Good luck with your first half of Homecoming with Lowell! Make sure he doesn't grope your boobs or ass!" Mariam shouted, as she waved to Zelda, who was only a foot away from her. The potential Queen of Hyrule only quirked an eyebrow at the abnormal and strange behavior of Mariam.

"Hey! You're not answering me! And stop waving to Zelda as if you're saying good bye to her! She hasn't gone anywhere yet!"

Finally, Mariam turned to Samus as she smiled in a cheesy, yet overenthusiastic way.

"It's fun to make pointless deals when you know that you don't need them!" She brightly exclaimed.

"Thank you once again for your kindness, Ahmed," Zelda said, as she flushed in embarrassment.

"No problem!" Mariam said again in that overly bright voice, as she dropped her smile for a moment.

"It's no problem, really. You don't need to worry about it. In fact, I think I was going to go for some nicer, violet flats that I saw on display from the shop down the street yesterday," Mariam told her in a normal tone of voice.

"… Once again! Thank you so much!" Zelda told her.

"Okay, girlfriend, enough talking with my obsessed stalker. We gotta get home. It's getting late."

The two exited the shoe section, and finally, that blasted department store. When they finally got on the cobble stoned streets of Nintendo City, the sun already was setting. The everlasting star was slowly coming to an end for the day, as both the two blonds would wait until tomorrow where they would both see each other again. Tomorrow would be that long awaited day where they would go to Princess Peach's castle. Princess Zelda's carriage was already waiting for her directly in front of the store, as the coachman took her bags and placed them into the back.

"Well, I guess this is good-bye until tomorrow, right?" Samus said. Zelda nodded.

"I'm actually really excited for tomorrow. I really want to see Peach's home and her friend," Zelda explained, as she smiled. Samus smiled back.

"I know, me too. But damn. We've got shitloads of homework. Perhaps choosing today for dress and shoe shopping was WAY too much. I gotta head home, make dinner, and then eat dinner, and then start my World Geo project, and then freak out about shit, and then decide how am I going to finish all of my homework in less than 24 hours, and then finally do my homework!"

Zelda blinked a couple of times, as Samus still kept on listing off a few more things she had to do.

"-and then I'll actually sleep. Well, anyways, good-bye, Z!"

"Wait! Samus. I gotta a question for you!"

"Hn? What is it?"

"What does the word: 'boobs' mean?"

"Eh?"

"So the term, "boobs" means: 'Eh?', correct?" Zelda asked.

"No! I "Eh?"ed in confusion! It's a modern term for the word: "breasts", why?"

Zelda's face turned white for a moment. As regret started to fill every inch of her body for Marth's proposal.

"Oh no…"

"What? What's wrong?"

"I think I regret agreeing to go to Homecoming with Lowell now…"

"Why? What happened?"

And Zelda began to tell in huge detail about the whole scenario of how Marth asked her to the dance. Samus' face turned red with fury, as she cussed to herself a few times. The bounty hunter began to pull out her "death notebook", as she'd put it, and began to come up with a way on how to assassinate Prince Marth Lowell of Altea. It took a great deal of convincing for Zelda to tell her not to, because she'd probably be pressed with charges from Marth's family for the murder. Zelda sighed heavily, as she continued to speak more about her dilemma with Marth.

"The only thing I can do is to go with it, Samus."

"That's the only thing you should do is accept it… Or! You could make Marth and your's half of Homecoming a living nightmare, so that there is no way he'll ever-"

"That's just cruel, Samus," Zelda stated, matter of factly.

"Yeah, I know. But it wouldn't hurt from trying, right?" Samus pointed out, as Zelda shook her head vigorously.

"It's not fair and neither is it nice."

"I don't know. Just go with the flow, and- Ah _shit_, I gotta run! See you tomorrow!" Samus said after looking at her watch. She quickly shoved her red motorcycle helmet on her head, and began to start the engine of her cycle. The piece of technology revved up, as Samus drove fast and made a sharp turn in the other direction.

"Bye!" Zelda called after her, as large black clouds of smoke trailed off from Miss Aran's bright red motorcycle. The bounty huntress waved back at her, until a few seconds later, she was gone down from the street.

Zelda sighed heavily once more, as she stepped into the carriage. With a crack of her coachman's whip, she was off back home. Perhaps, Marth wasn't as bad as he seemed. She just had to give him a chance. Yes, that is exactly what she told herself. Always give a person a chance, judge them by the way they treat you, and most importantly, see how they treat other people. Though, Princess Zelda Harkinian wouldn't realize it, but she would unintentionally fall for someone from that trio of popular, educated boys. And it was destiny that she would meet him once again, not only from her dreams, but in reality as well.

* * *

**ARGH. ARGH. ARGH!**

**Review. Review or die, as I put it. I'll be very pissed off, if you don't. Erm… please? Pretty please? ;**

**Love,**

**-BKP**


	11. What She Wanted

**Thank you so much to all that reviewed. You all have my extreme gratitude. Those, who reviewed, ROCK! . Love ya all:D**

* * *

"**What she wanted… was nothing more than a little fun,  
What she desired… was something that everyone desired.  
What she wished for… was just love.  
How harmful is it to wish for love?" – Peach's inner voice.**

**Chapter 11 – What She Wanted…**

"Fuck you, fuck you, FUCK YOU, LOWELL!" Samus screamed, as she dribbled the ball far upwards toward the goal. She finally sent a full blow kick to the ball, for it then went into the leg width kick range of Fox.

"Well, you stink, you stink, YOU FREAKIN' STINK OF GANGSTERS, ARAN!" Marth yelled back, as he stopped running after her and stopped dead right in front of her to pursue his verbal fight with the bounty huntress.

"You're a freakin' idiot," Samus declared, as she halted her running as well. She stood up straight, crossed her arms, and sent him a full fury glare at him.

"Well, you're a fucking bitc- YEEEEOOOOOOWWWW!!!!!"

Marth's words were cut off, due to Samus crushing his foot with her cleats. A fore headed vein appeared directly on the back of Samus' head, for there were flames in her eyes due to not only the fact he was taking one of her best friends out for Homecoming, but also the fact that he almost called her a "bitch".

"Seriously, we're on the same team, and you don't even know how to "share"?!? Perhaps you should go back to kindergarten where they learn how to share and care!" Her voice shook with frustration and anger.

"THAT DOESN'T GIVE YOU THE RIGHT TO STEAL THE BALL WHEN I'M ON THE SAME TEAM AS YOU!" Marth screamed, as he butted heads against Samus, literally.

"SO?! IF YOU AREN'T GOING TO PASS THE FREAKIN' BALL TO ME WHEN I'M WIDE OPEN, THEN I MIGHT AS WELL STEAL IT FROM YOU!"

She retorted back, as she forcefully pushed her head back against Marth's cranium. The Prince gritted his teeth in complete fury, as he began to make another smartass comeback to Samus. The whole boy's team even stopped practicing for a little bit as they watched their captain and the newcomer both battle each other with a duel of words, quick wit, and insults. Off the sidelines, both Coach Jackson and Roy were both shaking their heads at Samus and Marth. Roy sweat dropped in place for his best friend, as he sighed. He tiredly rubbed off the sweat on his forehead with a towel, dangling around his neck. He sat down on the bleachers, as Coach Jackson continued to frown at the duo for arguing, arms crossed and eyebrows creased in his forehead.

"It's already been two weeks since we let Aran onto the team, and those two idiots are still arguing," the coach reported to Roy. Roy took a large gulp of water from his bottle, as he looked at the coach with an eyebrow quirked.

"Well, what do you expect? Those two don't get along like lava and ice. Aran is lava, and Marth is the ice. They cancel each other out. You can't really expect much out of them," Roy trailed off, as he stretched his arms out in the air and yawned. He raised his left hand against the back of his head, and rustled his hair about from the sweat.

"Flores, you're Lowell's best friend. You should know how to make him work together with Aran! I'm serious. To be honest, when they fight don't over the ball; I can sometimes see some great- … chemistry. Or am I just insane for saying that?" Mr. Jackson questioned to the youth. Roy shook his head; as he rested his forearms on his knees, and allowed the towel clothe the top of his head.

"No. You're not crazy for saying that. I can see where you're getting from. They share a lot of similarities. It's kind of the fact that they are a bit too similar is the reason why they don't get along so well. Yet, they are also different in some ways as well," Roy stated, as he looked down at the grass for a moment, watching two ants fight over picking up a piece of leaf to bring back to their queen ant.

"But still… How do we make them work together?"

"That's not something we can really do, Coach. I mean… It's mainly a problem between the two. They need to learn to set aside their ego, pride, and arrogance in order to work together. Honestly, I can see that they would be an Iron Duo, if you know what I mean," Roy stated, as he finally watched the two ants stop fighting over the leaf and work together to bring the leaf back to their queen.

"The way I see it, Coach, is that both Aran and Marth are both really strong. Marth is the strongest boy in our high school. Yet, Aran is strong as well. Marth is different, however, since he's got people on his side. Aran doesn't have that many people who appreciate her existence. They are perfectly matched for each other. The only thing they don't realize is that they need each other in certain incidents like playing on a soccer team to work together. It's like day and night. We need both day and night to survive, yet both of them are blind to this. They both think that they can just live fine with either day or night."

Roy explained as he finally watched the two strong ants carry off the leaf to their queen ant of their house. Roy blinked a couple of times at the sight, for he smiled when he knew that those two ants were finally able to work together. Mr. Jackson, however, was a man with short temper and little understanding when it came to Roy's explanation. The coach of the soccer team closed his eyes in desperate hopes for a better understanding for the redhead's words. Instead, he only threw his clip board down on the ground.

"That still doesn't make any sense for me! I asked for an explanation for what we can do to make them work together, goddamnit! I didn't ask for a speech with metaphors, similes, and shit!"

Roy sighed heavily, for he was tired for the day and slightly annoyed at the fact that Mr. Jackson was throwing his temper on him.

"In other words… I suggest you talking with the other teachers. If they won't get together here on the soccer field, they should learn to get together in other situations as well," he simplified for him.

"So… Are you saying that I should get them work together in school as well?" Mr. Jackson questioned, unsure of what the swordsman was implying. Roy hesitated for a moment as he thought over it.

"… That, and they should work together outside of school. You've got to take what both Aran and Marth need, want, or desire and put them in a situation where they'll have no choice but work together."

An idea stirred around Mr. Jackson's head, as does a chef when coming up with a new recipe for his entrée dish. The gym teacher smirked in delight for a moment, as he had come up with a brilliant idea on how he could get Samus and Marth work together not only on the soccer field, but also in the classroom as well. No matter what, Mr. Jackson was sure to get what he wanted. Of course, he wanted to win against Rustenburg, but first things first. The first thing he wanted on his list was to get the blue haired prince and the bounty huntress to work together. And he'd do everything in his power to make sure that would happen.

* * *

"Ahh! This really feels nice, Zelda! Thank you once again for inviting me to your friend's party!" Malon stated, as she stretched her arms in front of her. 

The red haired grinned broadly for she was in a cheerful mood. The two best friends of Hyrule both sat side by side in the normal, royal blue carriage that the Princess used for her normal means of transportation. The Princess' coachman, Koji, had already received directions to Princess Peach's Castle and everything was perfectly planned. The only thing that wasn't perfect was Hyrule's Princess' mood.

"Hn? Zelda? What's wrong, dear?" Malon questioned, as she even leaned closer to Zelda to get a better look at her face.

"Why do you look so sad? You should be happy! You're going to see your friend! You told me that you were happy at the news that Peach finally was making a change for herself!" Malon stated.

"… It's not that."

"Then what is it? Remember that I'm always here for you, darling."

"… I'm scared."

"Of what?"

"Homecoming."

A dreaded silence filled the air between the best friends. The ranch girl leaned back in the seat of the carriage.

"Hmmm… Zelda. When you told me that you were going to Homecoming with Lowell, you seemed pretty calm and neutral, but now… you seem as if you are depressed over this silly matter."

"It's not only that."

"Alright, Zelda. One thing at a time. I can only hold a limit of what you speak of in little bits, not in huge fractions."

Zelda sighed, as she rested her head on the wall of the carriage. She closed her eyes for a moment and tried her best to remain calm. She wished to sleep.

"I'm worried about how Homecoming shall turn up with Lowell. Mainly because I finally realize how much of a sly flirt he is."

"I see."

"That's not only it, though. I mean, I could always handle a silly, flirtatious boy such as him with my magic. But… It's also the fact that I'm scared of the MRL," Zelda stated.

She opened her eyes, and shifted them to both of her hands. She played around with fingers, as she bit her lip.

"Have they done anything specific to you?"

"No, but I'm worried that they will."

She paused for a moment, as she thought back to that dreaded memory of the MRL tormenting Peach. Those horrible flashbacks crept all over Zelda's body like slimy disgusting slugs. She was paralyzed for a moment; for she worried about what the consequences for her dancing with Marth would be if the MRL Fan Club found it. However, what if they had already found out? What was their plan for Saturday, the day of the dance? Would they plan to humiliate her? Would they somehow rip her dress down in front of the whole school to see? Attempt to make her dash out of the ballroom, crying and embarrassed at how everyone and even Marth were laughing at her undergarments? What if they-…

"Zelda? Zelda! Are you alright?"

Zelda's fingernails mysteriously were being bitten by teeth, as her eyes were still wide with shock and fear for the MRL Fan Club. Her posture in the seat of the carriage was too hunched over for a lady like position, and she had been closing her knees close to her chest.

"Zelda… I asked if you were alright. You didn't answer me."

"… I'm fine now. Thank you for your concern."

"Darling, you really had me worried there. You seemed as if you had seen all three Goddesses themselves! Please, Zelda… Don't scare me like that again. I beg of you. I don't want you to be getting upset over something silly."

"It's not silly! It's terrifying! I've just noticed today that I can feel something whenever I pass by that wretched trio of "girls"! Malon, did I ever tell you that when I always look into Peach's eyes I can see something in her. Whenever I look into her eyes, something tells me that she was just me now, or she was just at least as normal as I am, and now she's destroyed all because of those three! I'm scared. What if I end up like her? What if I'm never able to continue to attend the Super Smash Brothers High School? What happens then? I don't want to go back on my father's or not even my late mother's desires! I don't want to-"

"It'd be alright," Malon cut her off, as she took one of Zelda's hands and held it. She smiled reassuringly and gave her a fond look.

"Zelda… It will be absolutely alright. I have faith in you. Do you ever remember that legend?"

"… What legend?"

"The legend of this farmer boy who was believed to be the next Chosen Hero by the three Goddesses of Hyrule. Of course, nobody believed it. Or at least, nobody wished to believe it. It didn't matter if he had the Triforce of Courage marked on his hand, they still wanted proof. Since he was only a boy, he could never give the evidence that they hoped for, since he still had a lot to learn in order to become a hero."

Zelda said absolutely nothing for a moment, as Malon continued with the legend.

"One day, a huge plague hit all over the lands of Hyrule from another country. A huge war broke out, and they said our lands were cursed. It wasn't until that farmer boy had to fight his way to earn the Master Sword to save his land against that other country. He did everything and anything to earn that sword, just to save his land and get respect from everyone in Hyrule. Not one single Hyrulean believed him, except for the Hylian princess who believed he was destined to save the land."

"With her aid and guidance, she was able to help him earn respect from everyone around him and he slowly, but surely earned enough acknowledgement due to his hard work. He saved the land, and his name was remembered for decades and decades for restoring peace to land. Everyone had believed that boy would have never been the Chosen Hero sent by the Goddesses of Hyrule, due to his lifestyle and appearance, but he all proved them wrong."

"Malon, I do not understand what you are trying to tell me through that particular legend. I am fully knowledgeable about it because I'm named after that princess, who aided the Hero," Zelda told her best friend. Malon nodded her head seriously, as she continued to speak.

"Precisely. What I'm trying to say is that everyone thought that boy was really weak. Though… he proved them wrong. He was able to show them that he was actually very strong. A lot of Hylians now always underestimate everyone because they always base their beliefs due to social ranking. Just because you are a princess, Zellie, doesn't mean that you are no less capable of handling anything from the MRL. Personally, I believe that you can always decide your own fate. You must have the right attitude, and determine what you can do for yourself. If some one as simple such as a farmer boy can do it, I believe that you can take on these so called females as well. You're a princess, Zelda! Don't allow anyone as low as them get to you. You're kilometers better than they are. Remember, you will always have me as a friend," Malon commented as she smiled again, with her normal, warm smile.

Zelda stared at her best friend's words in astonishment, as she carefully thought over what she had said. She could only smile back at her friend for now, though her worries would only be temporarily over.

"That's the smile that everyone should expect for Hyrule's heir to the throne," Malon told her, as she leaned back on her seat and sighed.

It only struck Zelda again that she was the _one_ and _true_ heir to the crown of Hyrule. And though, her mind starting to whiz and stir about with worries and concern, she realized that she should just relax for now. She was already thinking too much about what was going on, and this was the moment for her to let her mind rest. For now, everything would be alright, though Zelda was clearly aware of the fact that her life at the Super Smash Brothers High School would only get harder and harder.

* * *

"We've arrived at Princess Peach's Castle, miladies," the coachman reported, as Koji made a turn around the turning circle of Princess Peach's stone cobbled driveway. 

Indeed, Peach was _rich_. Right in the middle of that turning circle was a small center placed, lined with stones where there was green grass and a water fountain. The two young ladies peered out of the carriage window, to see this humongous castle made out of stone. A traditional square castle with black, tiling roofing squares, coning the tops of the five different towers that Peach's castle had. Her house must have had at _least_ three floors to it. Zelda's and Malon's mouth were both hanging open like a fish on a dinner plate, with their eyes wide of the sight in front of them. They never imagined that Peach would live in such a grand, wondrous place such as this. Zelda slowly pried open the carriage door, as she stepped down to the ground. Malon shortly followed after her, as the Princess of Hyrule stepped forward and looked around at the rose bushes surrounding the castle.

"Welcome to Princess Peach's Castle!" a voice said.

Zelda faced dead right in front of her, yet she saw no one. She looked left and right, but she couldn't figure out where that voice was coming from. She turned around to Malon to see if she knew where that person's voice was from, but Malon just shrugged.

"Hey! Down here!" the same voice said again.

Zelda looked down to the ground to see a very short… what appeared to be a man in front of her. Though, it didn't seem possible for such a young man to be that tiny, so Zelda concluded that he must be at least a boy.

"As I said before… Welcome to Princess Peach's Castle! I'm Toad!" the little boy said again.

Zelda raised both her eyebrows, as she observed the little boy. For some reason, he had no hair. Or what was his "hair" was something like a big afro which was white and had red polka dots all over it. Though, she did not see any single strand of hair on the boy's head, so it appeared to be as if it was a mushroom top or something on the boy's head. He wore a blue vest with nothing else under it, along with white pants and small sneakers. The Triforce holder of Wisdom only blinked a few times in confusion, wondering why Peach had a servant that was that _tiny_.

"Anyways, my mistress told me to await your presence, greet you warmly, and guide your way through the castle! Although, she mentioned there would be three other people coming to her home, besides Mistress Daisy. And there are only two of you. And it's already ten minutes after the time my mistress planned her party… So where could that other person be?" Toad questioned to himself.

He put his right hand under his chin, and frowned down at his feet, as he continued to talk to himself about his orders. Malon and Zelda both quirked an eyebrow at Toad's mutterings to himself, as they thought they head something rumble through the air. Both the two Hylians both straightened their backs up, as they tried to listen more attentively to whatever they heard. They could hear the rumbling in the air grow louder and louder. Toad also stopped talking to himself for a moment as he also looked up. Down past the driveway, they could see a red dot with clouds of tan-brown smoke trailing after it. The red dot revved up, and the three could hear a loin's roar of the road from that red dot.

A high speed rider sped through the gates of Princess Peach's Castle and drove up the slope of the driveway all the way up to the driving circle of the driveway. The threesome's eyes broadened at the fast paced motorcycle, as it was driven at a dangerously fast pace. Princess Zelda and Malon immediately saw the motorcyclist was aimed straight for them. They both jumped out of the way, to avoid the rider's contact of force from them, while Toad realized it a little too late.

"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!" Toad screamed, as the crimson motorcycle bashed him at least five yards forward.

Both Malon and Zelda stood there shocked, as they could not believe that the driver was that reckless as a driver and Toad's injuries. Toad had swirls in his eyes and a large bump on his head, all because he did not see motorcycle coming. Their heads slowly turned towards the motorcyclist, with her red helmet on, and the black, glass covering of her eyes and nose. The rider pressed a button on the side of her helmet, as the black covering flipped up. Shimmering green eyes. The one and only most violent, aggressive, and short tempered girl in Nintendo City. Samus Aran.

Samus lifted the helmet off her head and flipped her hair towards the two Hylians girls, as she had a moment where stars appeared and beauty was aroused from the bounty huntress with her smile. The Hylians both whispered: "So cool!" to each other at the same time, as they stared at Samus' awesomeness. Though the moment slowly broke as she said:

"Yo! Nice parking, right?" as she gave a toothy smile and a thumbs up sign.

The two Hylian girls both fell face down in exaggeration of their "Awesome Impression of Samus Aran" bursting. They both slowly rose up from the ground as they faced the blond.

"Heh heh heh. Yeaaah, sorry about that. Once this baby goes, it _goes_. It's like a wild mustang, this thing. Ya'know? Hard to control at times, and once ya think ya got the control of it, turns out ya don't! I also didn't see you guys were in the way of this whole parking circle thing a ma' bob. I hope I didn't hurt anyone!" Samus exclaimed, as she laughed nervously with her hand rubbing the back of her neck.

Malon and Zelda both sweat dropped, as they both did not know how to tell her that she did run over someone.

"Ah, Samus. It's wonderful to see you again in such a short period of time."

"Yeah! I know! Oh my gosh, girlfriend, I have to tell ya about my soccer practice that went today! It was hellish as usual! That stupid Lowell boy was being an asshole again. He's one of the reasons for why I'm late!"

"Alright, you can tell me how it all went in great detail once we get inside to Peach's house. Though I hate to be the breaker of news, you just ran over one of Peach's servants, Toad," Zelda explained.

Samus stopped grinning at them, as her eyes almost popped out of her sockets.

"WHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTT?!?!?!"

Samus immediately started to have tears streaming down her face, as if there were two waterfalls underneath both of her eyes.

"Where is he? Or her? Oh GOD! Please don't tell me that he or she died! I can't have my motorcycle license removed! I'll DIE without this baby! And-and-and-and… OH MY GOSH! MY OLD LEADER WOULD KILL ME FOR HAVING THIS BIKE REMOVED OUT OF MY POSSESSION!!! NOOOOO!!! I CAN'T LET THIS HAPPEN!" Samus wailed, as she buried her face in her arms on top of the steering handles of the bike.

Zelda faced Malon for a moment, as they both nervously smiled at each other. Malon nodded at her, as Zelda walked up to Samus and comfortingly patted her back.

"Samus, calm down. I'm sure you didn't kill Toad. He doesn't look that injured from over here, come on now. Get up off from your motorcycle, and look at him. Besides the fact his eyes seem knocked up, and all of his joints seem broken, he still looks as if he's breathing! Look!" Zelda comforted, as she pointed in front of her.

Samus lifted her head to the place where Zelda was pointing, as she saw that young boy certainly appear beat up and lying face down flat as if he was dead. The blond haired, green eyed girl immediately abandoned her motorcycle and dashed straight to the direction where the little servant was. She lifted his head up, while he still had X's in his eyes. Samus froze as if she had been turned into stone, and she wailed.

"NOOOOOOOOO!! I KILLED HIM!!! I KILLED THE POOR, LTITLE SERVANT, Z!!! WHAT AM I GOING TO DO!?!? WHAT WILL PEACH SAY?!?!!" Samus sobbed, as she buried her face into Toad's blue vest.

"Um, Samus?"

"WHHHAAAATTTTT?" Samus asked, as she sobbed even more.

"Erm, I think he's sleeping."

"WHAT?!" Samus shouted, as she stood up in front of Zelda.

She placed her head directly close and front of Zelda own face, as she gave her a very hard eyed stare. The other beautiful young lady sweat dropped and smiled nervously, before pointing down in front of her. The blond girl looked down near her feet, for Zelda was right! Poor, little Toad had rolled on his right side, near Samus' feet, and using his hands as a pillow. He had been snoring away peacefully, as a large snot bubble kept on being blown up and down from his nose as he snored. This was going to be a very interesting visit for the three young ladies.

* * *

After the "accident" with Toad and Samus, Toad was sure to wake up surely after Samus emptied the remains of her soccer practice water bottle on him. The two people started apologizing like crazy, for Samus was on her hands and knees, apologizing to Toad. Toad on the other hand, was bowing down in front of Samus, also apologizing. The short servant was apologizing for his stupidity of not realizing that Samus was headed directly to where he was standing. 

Though, it was not too long for both of them to forgive each other and get inside of Peach's Castle to see their beloved princess. Toad had leaded them on an extravagant tour where he was basically showing him the basics of where everything was. The kitchen, dining room, the living room, a bathroom, and a few guest rooms as well. As soon as the trio was a bit more familiar with their surroundings, Toad was sure to show them into Peach's room. They reached a corridor where it was a dead end. A soft-rose pink door with another soft pink plague sign that said: "Peach's Room" in cursive writing, hung by a nail.

"Right in here, miladies," Toad said.

He opened the soft-rose pink door to them, revealing Princess Peach's room.

"Hiya!" said a friendly voice from the room.

Toad opened the door even more to reveal the room surrounded by pink, flowery wallpaper. The trio's eyes widened for they never imagined that Peach's room would be so… girly. Everywhere they looked, there was sure to be the color _pink_. A pink dresser to the right, a giant, pink king sized bed with furry, pink blankets, a pink canopy, pink cushions on her bed, pink carpet all over the floor of the room, a pink colored desk with a pink stationary set on it, pink slippers, a pink, circular coffee table with a pink tea set on it, and Peach and this strange girl wearing a yellow dress drinking tea, and a… what?

The trio's eyes focused back to the center of the room, where they did indeed; see both the hostess and one of her guests sipping tea. The three could only assume that the girl wearing the yellow dress was the one who greeted them as soon as the door opened. Both of the other females were seated on the floor on pink cushions, sitting cross legged, as they delicately sipped their tea from soft pink, china rose tea cups. The other guest that Peach was with grinned broadly at them, as she rose up from the cushion she was on.

The girl that the three assumed to be Princess Daisy of Sarasaland, of whom Peach mentioned about. The young lady was a fairly normal, pretty girl, with brunette hair and bright baby blue eyes. She wore a crown on the top of head, symbolizing her royalty status, and a long orange-yellow dress with short, puffed sleeves along with white gloves. A big bright green broach studded the exact middle of her chest and along with earrings of a similar design. The unfamiliar girl just smiled brightly at them as she rose up from the cushion she sat on. She walked over them and bowed very formally.

"Nice to meet all of you. My name is Princess Daisy of Sarasaland. Let's all get along," she said, with her head still bowed down towards the ground.

"Well! It's really a pleasure to meet cha!" Samus exclaimed brightly as she rubbed her neck, and extended a hand in front of Daisy. The brunette raised her head up, as she hesitated for a moment before she grinned. She gladly took Samus' hand and shook it.

"It's wonderful to see my dear Peachie have friends such as you," Daisy commented. She turned to the Princess of Hyrule as Zelda quickly straightened herself and bowed politely as well.

"Yes… We've been taking good care of her, it's always nice to know that she has a supportive friend such as you," Zelda told her, before she lifted her head as well, and smiled at her as well.

"Anyways, come on in!" Daisy said abruptly as she literally dragged all three of the girls in the center of the room and forcefully made them sit down on the three, unoccupied cushions on the floor. "We've been waiting for you guys for a while!"

The orange dressed Princess smiled once again as she sat down on her own cushion. Malon faced to her left at Zelda a little bit nervously, as she tried her best to smile. Zelda also smiled back at her best friend, but looked over to where Samus was sitting to see what her reaction to her surroundings would be. The bounty huntress just grinned broadly and cheerfully, delighted that she was finally able to see Peach outside of school. The Princess of Sarasaland picked up a pink teapot with a rose design on it, as she delicately and carefully poured them all tea with similar pink tea cups.

"Thank you," Zelda said politely, as Daisy finished pouring her cup. Daisy grinned back as she started to pour Malon's tea cup as well. Malon nodded politely when Daisy also finished pouring her cup.

"You're very welcome!" Daisy said, as she sweetly smiled with the teapot in her hand, before setting it down in the center of the table.

"Oh ya! Thank you, Daisy! You don't mind me calling you: "Daisy", now do ya?" Samus asked, as Daisy shook her head.

"No, of course not! Any friend of Peach's, I consider them to be a friend as well!" Daisy replied. Malon comfortingly smiled as she began to offer some thoughts.

"That's the same thing with me. I always know that Zelda would become friends with beautiful, young people no matter whom or what they are," Malon stated, as she faced Peach. She did not want to be misunderstood by her. She would get her meaning of existence clear and right. "I love Zelda, and I'd be sure to love all of her friends as well, since she has a very good judgment of the kindness in people's hearts."

The Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom's eyes nervously looked at Malon's eyes as well. Malon's piercing, meaningful stare was pretty clear and straight forward. She wasn't the type who would ever betray her friends. The strawberry blond princess' eyes only shifted away shortly from Malon's eyes to the sweets, and finally nervously at her hands in her lap, as she fiddled around with her fingers. She firmly bit her lip, while she continued to avoid the social part of her small party. The red haired ranch girl decided to just continue on.

"I'm even surprised myself that I was able to befriend a person as great as a princess. Though, I know that every memory I've experienced with Zelda was a pleasure and always will be," Malon finally commented with her eyes still fixed on Peach.

Zelda only smiled sweetly for what she said, though her face only turned red with embarrassment for she did not expect Malon to say such a thing. Daisy only clasped her hands in delight, as she fondly looked at the ranch girl for telling everyone beautiful comments about her best friend. Samus on the other hand, just lifted her eyebrows, as she finished the last of drop of her black tea from her teacup.

"Oh, stop it, Malon you know that's not true," Zelda said.

"It's true. You know it is, because you've been always there for everyone… Speaking of which, Samus, how come you didn't bring a friend?" Malon said, as she faced the bounty huntress.

"Eh? Me? Hmmm… That's a very good question. Heh. If I could, I'd bring this specific lady over, but I don't know where she is anymore… I'd also bring her husband as well, but… they both disappeared in my life," Samus stated, her mind reminisced the couple she had always been fond of.

"… There's also this man. This guy that I was in love with. I mean, even though we're not together anymore, I still feel for him as a very precious friend. He's the one who helped me the most before I started high school. Without him, I'd still be a street junkie. But he… he changed me. He showed me the world in a whole, new light," Samus said.

Her mind flipped through all of those memories as quick as light bulb going out. All of those wonderful, beautiful memories of her and him. He was the one who helped her out the most, as if he helped her wrap herself in a tight chrysalis to make her become a fully, grown young adult with extravagant wings. Her heart fluttered inside her ribcage even at the very thought of him. Though, he had to leave her. He was forced to leave her against her own will. Times change, people changed, and Samus knew that her love would change for him one day.

For a moment, nobody said a word in the conversation. It seemed as if nobody had anything to say. Samus was thinking about her past again, while Malon and Zelda just looked at each other for a moment, as if they were waiting for someone to say something interesting so they could all have a lively discussion. Daisy was busy sipping her tea, for Peach was doing nothing but looking at the plate of sweets in front of her. After Daisy put down her tea cup back on her saucer, she laid her eyes on the two Hylians in front of her.

"So how was your day? Did you two have a tough time coming here, or were you able to properly find this place?" Daisy asked politely.

"Uh… A little bit. My carriage driver, Koji, was able to find his place over here. He has a very good sense of direction, so it wasn't that much of a hassle," Zelda explained, as she brought the edge of the teacup to her lips.

"I see… Well, that's a good thing. I mean… This place isn't that… easy to find because, well you know," Daisy just hesitated for a moment, for finding the right words to say, as she kept on talking. "Peach's Castle is a little bit west of Nintendo City and it… must be a really hard place for you guys to find, especially since it's your first time here."

"Yeah… I know," Malon included, a little bit curious to know why the Princess of Sarasaland was bringing up such a thing.

For a moment, Daisy felt like stabbing herself over and over again, for she had made the situation more awkward than she already thought it was. There was nothing to be said at all to anyone, or anything. The usual party igniter, Samus, wasn't paying attention at all to save them from the awkwardness. The bounty huntress was still lost in her memories of her and that special person. Daisy, Malon, and Zelda were thinking the exact same thoughts, however.

"_Just… SAY something."_ Zelda's mind told her.

"_But what if I say something completely outrageous and embarrass myself in front of everyone here?"_ Malon asked to herself.

"_I better just wait for someone else to speak,"_ Daisy thought.

"_Though, no one's saying anything… So does that mean they are all expecting me to say something?"_ Zelda questioned to herself.

"_But then, if I say something, it will all be just rubbish,"_ Malon thought, as she brushed her copper locks to the side.

"_Though, nobody wants to sit through a party where there are no conversations,"_ Daisy concluded.

"_AH, FORGET IT!"_ the two Hylians and the Princess of Sarasaland thought all at once.

Luckily the other princess came to their save of their dead party.

"I'm going to leave now."

All four heads turned directly to the host.

"EH?!?" they all said at once.

Peach stood up from her cushion, as she did not look at anyone's eyes and only stared at the empty plate of sweets in front of her.

"There are no more cookies left… I better go get some in the pantry," Peach whispered, as she picked up the pink plate.

"Ah, wait! Let me come with you!"

Samus, Zelda, and Malon all looked at the girl across from them, to see Daisy stopping Peach from moving an inch forward.

"I'm your best friend. I should be able to help you out too at times, right?" Daisy told her, as she smiled.

Peach looked at her a little bit surprised, but slowly nodded her head. Daisy smiled back, in a more reassuring way, as the two girls walked out of the room. But before they exited, Peach turned around and faced all three of them.

"Until then… Please make yourself comfortable and enjoy yourselves," Peach said again with that small voice of hers.

She bowed politely in front of them before taking off with Daisy. Samus raised her eyebrows, as she grinned at the two Hylian girls at her. She was finally in the mood to talk to them about something important.

"Oh yeah! Z! I didn't tell you what happened with Lowell at soccer practice, now did I?"

* * *

"They seem to be having a little bit more fun without us," Daisy commented. 

Peach slowly nodded as she placed a couple of cookies on the plate from her pink cookie jar in the kitchen on the counter. Daisy rested her right elbow on the edge of the gray, black ceramic counter, as she sighed heavily.

"… How's school?" Peach asked delicately, as she placed more and more chocolate chip cookies on the plate.

"It's difficult, like always. I swear, going to an all girls private school is tougher than a public school," Daisy complained, as she leaned a little bit further back on the counter and placed her left hand on her forehead. "I have a headache now, from thinking about all of those concepts I have to memorize for Chemistry tonight."

"Hmm… Is that right?"

"Yeah, it is. Ugh, I'm happy though. Luigi finally said he's available on Saturday night, so I can see him. Gosh, he's always been busy recently! It's annoying. Every time he has an open day where I can see him, I just happen to be busy on that day as well! And it's same for me! Every time when I have an open day where I can visit him, he's busy on that day too! Ah! I've been meaning to see him for quite a while now… I think I shall do something naughty to him when I see him…," Daisy said, as she winked at Peach.

"… But that's what you get."

"Eh?"

"That's what you get when you take up field hockey, lacrosse, softball, and are on the school's year book committee all year round. Don't you think that's too much?" Peach inquired, as she arranged the cookies in a flowery like position.

"Hah! Girl, I gotta keep myself busy! If there's anything I hate, it's being inactive in my school's community! You knew that, didn't you? Remember middle school? I always want to make sure that I'm taking everything I can, so I can get into a good college. You should do the same Peach, it's not healthy. You need to get OUT there and have some fun, right?"

Peach said nothing for a moment. She ignored what her best friend had just said, while she fished out a glass from the cupboard. She poured herself a glass of pink lemonade from a large, glass pitcher before sipping it. Daisy, seeing that Peach would not say anything to her, decided to continue with what she was saying.

"Anyways, there's a reason for me wanting to come down here with you. I couldn't say it in front of those other dames, but I wanted to let you know something."

Peach did not utter a single word, for she just continued on sipping her pink lemonade. Daisy inhaled sharply before reporting her the important news.

"Mario has a new girlfriend."

Peach stopped drinking, for her neck twisted over to where Daisy was standing and her eyes broadened with a little bit of shock. Her one and only best friend didn't say anything nor did she react to Peach's reaction, for she was inspecting her nails for a moment, before biting a bit of her nail off. She still seemed pretty mellow and monotone about it. Peach didn't say anything though, for she could not think of any words to say. But she wanted to know if Daisy had just said that to her.

"He's worried for you. He wants you to move on. He feels that you should never be lonely, and that's why he wants you to take any opportunity you can to make sure that you'll be with someone who can protect you to the fullest," Daisy explained, as she looked back at Peach. "You still love him, don't you?"

Peach's eyes were only on glass of pink lemonade, she was clutching in her hands. Daisy sighed heavily at Peach's reaction and the fact that she wasn't saying anything, made her feel a little bit stressed.

"Why are you like this? There's no reason for you to be sad over what happened two years ago. It's done. It's the past. We can't always be like this forever, Peach. It's not your fault, it's not Mario's fault, and it's not _their_ fault either."

At the emphasize of what Daisy referred to as "their", it made Peach react by having her face Daisy in the eye.

"Hmph. You finally look at me now," Daisy commented.

Peach still didn't say anything. Her eyes were on the plate of cookies as she thought of her beloved person. He… had… moved on without her? It just wasn't possible for Peach Toadstool to believe. Of course, she was happy only if he was happy. Though, a small part of her could see why Mario would be able to find another girlfriend. He was everything that she wanted. Smart, funny, handsome, kind, caring, and very gentle. Those were the reasons why she fell for him. But who would know that other people would ruin their relationship?

"… Is he happy?" Peach asked softly, as Daisy's eyes shifted to her left to Peach.

Daisy smiled, as she nodded.

"Yes. He's very happy for himself, but he still isn't fully happy because you're like this. He still loves you, but not the way he used to. Just a little bit differently. He described his feelings for you as if he considered you to be a very close friend. Don't you feel that way as well, Peach?" Daisy questioned.

Peach silently nodded, as Daisy smiled at her for being honest at least once today.

"You really can't lie to me anymore, Peach. It's not healthy. You shouldn't lie to Samus, Zelda, or me. We are all of your friends. People who lie to themselves… are lonely, selfish, and lost inside. Why do try to act this way? You act as if there is nothing wrong, when there are clearly some things that are."

Peach still said nothing. There were no words for her left to say. It was as if all of the words that should be heard were all sucked in a black hole, and the only thing that it left was a human puppet with no voice at all. Daisy frowned, rolled her eyes, and sighed heavily, as she rested her left hand on the cool, kitchen counter.

"Peach… I'm done. I'm through. I've done everything I can to get you out of this state. Since I've done my part, the rest is up to you," The Princess of Sarasaland hastily snapped, as she grabbed the plate of cookies to march back upstairs where the guests were.

"Hurry up, now Peach. We don't want to keep your other friends waiting, do we?"

Daisy immediately left the room, for she was fully prepared to handle any more social awkwardness after talking with Peach. She pushed open the swing door of the kitchen, as she huffily, briskly walked out. Peach, on the other hand, stayed put in that same position she was in when Daisy spoke to her. She still stared directly at the empty glass of pink lemonade, and only thought about what her best friend had told her.

* * *

"So then anyways… Lowell then told me that I should be sent back to "Bitch Island", whatever the hell that means. So FUCK HIM! I mean, seriously! Whenever I look at Roy Flores, and see how cool and mild tempered he is, I wonder how the fuck Lowell is such an ass. He needs to be bagged and-… Oh wow! You guys are back!" Samus exclaimed, as she saw the two other princesses walk in the room. 

Malon and Zelda had both stopped listening to Samus' hateful rant about Marth Lowell, as they both turned around to see what the change of subject was. Indeed, both Princess Peach and Princess Daisy were back. The brunette princess smiled warmly as usual, as she was welcomed back into the center of fun. Peach, of course, hesitantly stepped into the room, as she felt the need to curtsy in front of everyone as she did so. As expected, all of her guests gave her questioning look, for they did not understand why Peach would do such a thing if was the host of the party.

The night continued on and Peach carefully watched all of her friends resume their normal positions. She watched Malon with close attention compared to the others in the room, and she realized that Zelda was right. She was a sweet girl. Several times, in fact, Malon asked her if there was anything wrong. Peach, of course, used her normal excuse saying that nothing was wrong. Though, the redhead double checked with her, and said that she could talk to her any time she wanted to, if she needed to. Peach smiled thankfully, as she just nodded her head. All of them had a splendid time, while they watched Samus make several jokes, and Peach smiled for the first time in a long while. It felt good. Everything about the atmosphere with the lively energy made Peach feel more relaxed than ever. The Pink Princess realized that perhaps Daisy was right. She should never be like this. But of course, her paranoia was still in effect. It would take one specific person in her life to crack it open.

The five some finally enjoyed the rest of the night, going outside of Peach's balcony and staring at the glittered stars in midnight blue painted sky. They all stared in wonder, for they all knew that there sharing the same sky and the same endless possibilities of life. The day was coming to an end for a long, stressful week. Though, the three blonds wouldn't notice it, the next few days would be when the beginning started. They didn't realize it, but there was fate craved in those stars that had been awaiting these three girls of destiny for centuries. That fate was also intertwined with the ultra, famous young boys in their school, and tomorrow, Homecoming, would be when their fates would be really tied together. Nothing could separate these three blond girls from their fates, which involved three specific boys.

* * *

**A thousand apologizes to all. I am fully aware of keeping you waiting. However, school has started a few weeks ago for me, and alas, it takes up my time.**

**For those who've noticed, up to this chapter, some of the dialogue has changed here and there. I've realized that I need to make some elements of this story more realistic, and dialogue is part of it. **

**Unfamiliarity between characters should always refer to each other by their surnames, not their first names. I apologize for that.**

**Love,**

**-BKP **


	12. Connected

**I'm proud to present you the long, awaited chapter... The Homecoming dance! Thank you very much for all of your reviews!**

**Note:**** Only read this if you have a lot of time to waste. Thank you very much.**

* * *

**"I see, I find, I make sure.**

**I stare, I'm fascinated, I'm satisfied, but**

**I look up, I see, I compare.  
I despise, I stray, I'm abandoned.**

**We're connected at each and every place so  
when I think this word, you'll already know.**

**Oh, by the time we sleep the deep sleep,  
how many precious words will we have exchanged?" Connected by Ayumi Hamasaki**

**Chapter 12 – Connected**

It finally came. The day that everyone had been anxiously and stressfully waiting for had finally come. Homecoming. That meant only two words for Zelda Harkinian. Marth Lowell. She had been slightly nervous about meeting up with him and their little "date" of a dance. Perhaps it was natural for Zelda to be concerned for everything, but she was a little too concerned. Even if she didn't have the "perfect date", she still wished her night to run smoothly. She always wanted her days of life to be complete perfection, and she worried that something bad would happen. Then again, she remembered the advice Malon had given her. Everything would be alright.

She had a very vivid dream from last night. She dreamed of a man with striking blue eyes. She couldn't explain it, but she just knew it was a man in dreams. He was young. And he was fair, even though she didn't see his whole face. She felt him leaning close and closer to her, until he whispered something in her ear…

She sighed heavily, before inspecting herself in her full length mirror. Indeed, her servants did a wonderful job on helping her get ready for the dance. They had bathed her in a nice, warm bathtub filled with red roses, sprayed her perfume of irises, and drenched her hair with special fragrances and conditioner. She had put on that ivory, cream dress she purchased with Samus, which wrapped tightly around her body, outlining her fine curves. Along with those pair of Wrathington Ivory Classics Number 3092 strapped to her ankles. Two teardrop, crystal earrings were set in her pierced ears, giving her the radiance of light.

One of her servants had put on silver eye shadow, enhancing the pale colors of her. Her lips were painted a soft, rose pink to make her lips more luscious and delicate like a pearl. Most of the Princess' fair blond hair was tied up in an elegant twist on the back of her head, with two curled strands hanging down at the left and right side of her face. She was ready. She wanted this night to be perfect, no matter whom her date was, and she was ready to conquer any challenges if she faced any. Little did she know, her night would end up perfectly just as she hoped, but in a different way.

* * *

_**SNAP!**_

Link Wright had finished putting the finishing touches on his suit, as he strapped the pearl white bow tie near the throat of his neck. It was a little bit more than an hour before the dance started. The Hero had also been getting himself ready; similar to how Zelda did, standing in front of a full length mirror. He, however, frowned at his appearance. He was wearing a single-breasted, dark midnight blue jacket with the tails of his jacket ending past his bottom and almost down to the back of his knees, along with similar colored trousers, a white buttoned up shirt, and polished, black leather shoes.

He still had those traditional, Sheikah earrings in his two pierced ears, for that was the only thing from his daily outfit which he kept. The suit was tailored to fit him perfectly for his broad shoulders were shown off, along with his upper body being shown off with the bottom of his upper body being buttoned up from the jacket. A small pocket in his left breast contained a white, folded handkerchief for the finishing touch.

"Goddesses. Why do _I_ have to go to this stupid Homecoming dance? It's not like Marth is a two year old and can't dance on his own," Link told himself as he sighed heavily.

He still frowned at his appearance. There was something about him that was too gaudy or perhaps just not him. It just didn't look like him. It was as if he had taken place of a ninetieth century English gentleman. Link Wright wasn't the person who liked dressing up to go out and have fun. He didn't see the point. He felt it was as if a waste of time. Homecoming and none of the high school dances had ever interested Link one bit, yet he was always pestered by Marth and Roy to have him go. There had not been one ounce of happiness in Link's life for a long period of time, and he was perfectly content to have it that way till the day he died.

But the question of being able to live life to the fullest always played around in Link's head, even though he wouldn't like to admit it. What if there was something that was worth living for? Of course, he didn't want to go into further stupid, idealistic thoughts of what life was. He knew what it was. He discovered what the true meaning of life was seven years ago. He fully understood what his pure existence was. It was nothing of pure significance to the world, but only to exist and be that man in the corner of the room. He sighed heavily once again.

"This is too troublesome. I hate this. I don't want to go," Link told himself again. "I'm not going to have any fun."

For once, the young Hylian was honest with himself about that. His eyes danced around the room, as if he was trying to find something to make his life more interesting at the dance. His eyes kept on wandering around his house in the Kokiri Forest. It wasn't until his eyes landed on a shelve nailed the wooden wall of his small tree house. He squinted at the far away objects to see what was on there. Something had caught his attention. And whatever it was, it was a box with some sort of scribbling on it. It wasn't until he inched forward towards the shelve, he finally figured out what the object he was staring at was. The box's label in bright white letters read: "Leon's Male Temporary Hair Dye!"

It took him a while to realize that Marth, for some odd reason, debated on whether dying his hair a light shade of forest brown. After a long while, Marth's parents completely resented the idea of their son doing such a thing, so the Prince of Altea handed the box of hair dye to Link. The Hero of Time, of course, had no future use for it, so he stored it away on one of his empty shelves at his home. However, there was an opportunity now. Link considering maybe on finding a fun way to spend Homecoming. According to the hair dying kit, it supplied him all the necessary supplies for dying not only his hair, but also his eyebrows as well.

The young Hylian read the instructions carefully, for the dye said it would only last twenty four hours or if the user desired to get rid of the look less than the allotted time, he could always go and wash it off in the shower. It also took less than twenty minutes for the dying process to take effect. After much self debate, the young Hylian smirked at himself. He wanted to bargain with something and now was his chance. He pursued the hair dye, as he took some hair gel along with him, and proceeded into the bathroom of his Kokirian home.

* * *

"Do you have a reservation pass?" 

Link handed him the red envelope, as the student cashier of the Homecoming dance, opened it and examined the little slip in it carefully. After less than ten seconds the student volunteer placed a red stamp on the back of Link's left hand.

"In you go, now. Go ahead and enjoy yourself for an awesome night!"

Link nodded, as he proceeded past the already opened doors of the large ballroom that the Super Smash Brothers High School only used for dances. He entered the marble, white place with several pillars planted on the sides of the room, and large, cream colored shiny tiles in the center of the room where it served as a dance floor. The ceiling of the ballroom was a dome like shape; however, there the curved ceiling half was made out of glass, along with carvings near the glass to give the ballroom elegance and style. Of course, many people were already on the dance floor, waltzing to the music that was being played. There was a DJ on the far upper right, back corner of the room who had all of the music requests form all of the students of the school. As Link ventured even further past the door farther down from the first door he entered, he noticed a large group of girls.

They were all squealing, anxious waiting for Marth, Roy, or Link to enter the room. By the looks of their faces, Link could already tell that they wanted _him_ to come in as soon as they could. And nonetheless, they were all members of the MRL Fan Club. A twist in his stomach, made him slightly nervous, but he told himself to stay calm like always. However, the Hero of Time took a cautious step towards them, for they were blocking the entrance of the dance. Yet, they seemed unfazed by his step. Perhaps, he had pulled his little trick off. They did not say a word; instead they were all hushing each other, as they still waited for their "Link" to come. Link had to push by many of the girls, asking them to pass.

"You're in my way," Link commented to a petite, brunette girl who had a face of a squirrel.

The squirrelly faced girl just glared at him.

"Well, it's your fault for not finding another entrance. We're all waiting for LINK," she replied.

"LINK!" The rest of the girls repeated dreamily, as if they were in a trance.

"Well, guess what? I don't think he'll be coming, so let me pass," he snarled at them, as a wolf does when facing a predator.

"Hah! Nothing you'll say or do will ever make us think that Link will NOT come to the dance. He's always been coming to these dances since his freshman year. But fine. We'll let you pass. You'd just hold him up anyways, you jerk."

At the end of the last sentence, Link gritted his teeth, for he was tempted to smash that squirrelly girl's nose in. He balled up his fists so hard, that he could feel his short-cut nails clawing into the palms of his hands. He finally passed by the girls until that same brunette stopped him.

"Say, you're pretty good looking though. If Link doesn't come soon, do you want to spare a dance with me?" she flirted, as she batted her eyelashes.

"Sorry, no. I don't plan to dance tonight. It's not what I do."

"Hmm… Got a name, hun?"

"Arashi," Link lied immediately.

The squirrelly girl smirked at him seductively, as she winked.

"Well, I guess I'll be seeing you around, Arashi."

And just like that, Link escaped as far as he could from that group of girls. He made his way across the room where the punch bowl and the snacks were, as he sighed with relief. He had done it. They had not noticed it was him at all. After that debate he had, Link dyed his hair and eyebrows brown. He needed a disguise, a get away from his own personal identity. Though, he knew that dying his hair wouldn't be enough, so he spiked up the back of his hair and a few parts of his hair to give him a completely new look. He remodeled his hair to make the sides of his hair, more on top of his head and slanting towards his Hylian pierced ears. For the bottom part of his hair, which he couldn't spike up in the back, he flattened it down his neck. He had to admit, it gave him a cooler and yet noticeable look for his eyes. His crystal, ice-like cobalt eyes were more piercing ever with his hair and eyebrows dyed in a darker color. Tonight, he would be someone else. Someone nobody knew and neither himself. His alias would only be for himself and him only.

* * *

Link slowly sauntered towards the punch bowl on the table to his right side, where he picked up that silver scooper, as he poured himself a drink. He kissed the red, plastic cup as he tasted the berry punch, bringing himself back to life with its coolness and sweetness. He sighed to himself in relief. He was stressed. It appeared he'd have this whole evening to be by himself. Just the way he liked it. He took a few steps to his left, where he rested his head on one of the stone pillars of the ballroom. 

It was then when he let his eyes wander around the ballroom, when he noticed that Roy had ended his waltz with a freshman and was taking a drink from the punch bowl. He as well was dressed very nicely, in a black tuxedo, with a red sash strapped around his lower abdomen of the white shirt, along with a matching red bow tie. He appeared as if he's a professional, ballroom dancer who could do any sort of traditional ballroom dancing with that finely tailored coat of his. Link smirked to himself, as he was glad to see a familiar face.

"Hello Roy," Link said from behind the redhead, as Roy spun around in shock and wonder.

"Uhh… Hello?"

Link frowned, as he didn't understand that unfamiliarity in one of his best friends' voice.

"What kind of greeting is that?" he spat out, disappointed and slightly furious.

"What do you mean?"

"Roy! You've known me since freshman year, and THIS is how you greet me?"

"I'm sorry, but I don't know who you are."

Link was ready to throw his cup of berry punch down and walk out on him.

"How can you _not_ know who I am? I'm the one who helped you defeat DK last year at the Tournament!"

"… Link?"

The Hylian nodded, as Roy's face was completely baffled. The Pheraen almost let the plastic cup slip out of his hands with his mouth hanging open, before recollecting himself. He closed his open jaw shut, and shook his head a few times.

"Oh."

"'Oh,' is all you can say?!?" Link snapped.

"No. I'm just surprised, that's all. I never thought you'd… change your appearance like that."

"It's only temporary. It's that dye that Marth gave me seven months ago."

"Oooh! I see. That dye. Yeah. I have to say, I think it look really nice on you, Link. It really brings out your eyes very nicely. You also look…. I don't know how to describe it. Cooler than usual."

Link smiled, as he nodded.

"Yeah."

"Hey Roy!" Marth said, for the Altean Prince arrived on the scene not too long ago. He poured himself a drink, from the punch bowl as well, as he took a large gulp of it.

The Prince of Altea was intoxicated from head to toe with way too much cologne than a man should ever wear. The Altean future ruler was wearing a perfectly, ironed out black suit which was darker than Roy's, with a black bowtie and a white carnation on the right side of his breast pocket. Unlike his two best friends, he wore white gloves with the embroidery of the Altean family, kingship crest on the back of the gloves. It was made out of the finest Egyptian cotton available and passed on from generation to generation of the Lowell family. His whole attire made him look more of a mysterious, Italian man who could blend in well in the dark and send chilling fears of desire to a woman's spine.

"Ah! So, anyways. Roy, have you seen Harkinian? Or Link?"

"No, I haven't seen your beloved Princess Harkinian, but Link's right here," Roy told him, as he made a gesture to where Link was standing.

There was a long pause, for it took a while before the Prince of Altea could say something next.

"Um… Where's Link?" he asked innocently, as he looked around confusedly.

The Hero of Time practically fell face down.

" I'm right here, Marth."

Marth's eyes finally landed on the Hylian, as he looked at the person who sounded a lot like Link closely. He squinted his eyes to scrutinize the Hylian closely, as he also hunched down a bit and placed a hand under his chin.

"Hmmm… He sure does look like Link," Marth commented, as Link felt as if a hundred kilogram weight had fell on his head.

"What in the fucking Sacred Realm… DO YOU MEAN BY THAT?!!?" Link shouted, for he also was annoyed at Marth being slow with this realization of his appearance.

"Yep, that's definitely Link," Marth concluded, as he turned to Roy. Roy laughed, as Marth smirked at his wit. "Take it easy, big boy. You know that I'm only fooling around with you."

The blue haired prince was about to sling an arm over his friend's shoulder, before the Hylian dodged it.

"No, Marth. I will not be joining you to dance or party. I want the night to myself."

Marth faced Link with a disappointed, puppy dog eyed look as if he was begging him to change his mind. Roy, on the other hand, nodded his head in agreement.

"What?!?" Marth ejected in disbelief. "Don't you want to hang out with us tonight?"

"NO," Link replied immediately and almost so forcefully that everyone in the ballroom would have been able to hear him.

"You sure? You could do a lot of stuff here tonight with us! You know, meet all the pretty ladies here in this room tonight, check out the new supply of hot freshman… Oh yeah, also maybe hit on Ms. Tran so that she can raise my grade…," Marth listed off, as the destined Hero still shook his head.

"Don't you have a date, Marth? I don't want to be myself tonight. I mean…," Link lowered his voice so that he could really talk to them about this important subject. "… Do you ever wish that you could just rip off your own skin, transfer your mind into another body, and see how other people react to you?"

Both of his friends nodded.

"Yeah! Heck! I'd do it all the time! I'd see what that Ahmed chick thinks of me, how Harkinian thinks of how hot I'd look like if I wore that bright, white armor to this year's Tournament, and-"

"That's not what I meant," Link abruptly cut Marth off, before the Prince could list off a few more ideas.

"I understand what you mean. You sometimes just want to get away from all of that stuff that you feel every single day. You're curious, aren't you, Link? Well, have fun tonight. I know that neither Marth nor I could steal your night away from you," Roy finally said before he grinned.

The Prince gave Link another puppy eyed look, for he was hoping that his best friend would have fun tonight. As if he was begging the Hero of Time to come along with Roy and him. However, Marth knew that Link was very stubborn when it came to decisions. However, at the entrance of a certain blond made Marth completely forget about worrying about his friend's social health. He slyly smirked for he already had envisioned his normal, perverted thoughts about the one and only Princess Zelda.

"Whoops, there's my date… See ya later, guys!" Marth said, as he made a small, two fingered salute to them.

He made a quick escape from his two friends, as he rushed off to see the beautiful girl made her entrance of the night. Roy only sighed and sweat dropped heavily, as he faced Link, and gave him a warm smile.

"Well, I guess since this is the way you want to spend your night, I better leave you off too," Roy said. "You don't want anyone getting suspicious of me talking to someone I supposedly don't know, right?"

Link nodded, as Roy still smiled back at him.

"Alright. Laters," Roy said, as he gave him a little wave and carried off his punch to another corner of the room.

Link glanced up, as he stared at the ceiling of the ballroom. He watched the autumn stars, brightly shining down upon on everyone in the ballroom. With the moon full, and the night of people becoming one was something that Link felt that he needed to be alone with. Indeed, it was glorious that he was alone. He did not ever wish for anything to happen. He was perfectly comfortable, watching other everyone else find their own partner, and to be alone. Loneliness was what Link desired. However, Link would realize that his lie would only be exposed more and more to himself.

* * *

Zelda Harkinian gracefully, yet somewhat briskly, walked in the ballroom. So far, she had to face obsessive fan girls of the MRL, a dead fish in the middle of the hall way, several dance decorations which were hanging down too lowly because people pulled them down from where they hung for fun, and security. Apparently, a person had attempted to spike someone's punch when she wasn't looking. The seniors sponsoring the dance had to thoroughly search people from head to toe for anything that had to do with drugs, alcohol, and even condoms so that no teens would do anything they weren't supposed to. She sighed, as she was bemused on how well the seniors decorated the inside of the Super Smash Brother's ballroom. 

"Oi! Z! Over here!" A very familiar voice shouted to her. She spun to her left as she saw that a blond girl wearing all black was coming at her.

Whoever this girl was, she was wearing nice black slacks, high heeled black shoes, and a nice, black top. Her top consisted of a somewhat sleeveless with a two small sleeves wrapping around the upper arm part that didn't touch her shoulders, for there were two straps that was strapped over her shoulders with a sequined, black rose on the left side of her breast. Her make up also consisted of smokey, black glittered eyes, heavy, dark red lipstick that only gangsters would use, and somewhat pale-dark foundation. Her nails were painted black to go with her dark outfit, though she was beaming in satisfaction. Her blond hair was tied up in a high ponytail with a black, hair elastic, for there were styled bangs in front of her shimmering green eyes. It took less than a second to realize that the girl whom Zelda was staring at. It was the one and only Samus Aran.

"Hello Samus! I almost didn't recognize you there! You look so… pretty and… informal," Zelda finished the sentence, for she had expected Samus to be wearing some sort of dress or perhaps a nice skirt.

Samus smirked, before answering her friend's comment.

"Yeah, well I told you there was NO way that I was ever going to wear a dress for Homecoming, now did I?" Samus told her, as she winked. "So where's your Lowell lover boy now? I bet cha he's off chasing some other chick and ditched you."

Zelda shrugged nonchalantly.

"I wish that was the case. However, I just arrived here, so I really don't know where he is."

Samus faced Zelda, for a minute she wasn't facing back at Samus. Instead, her eyes were noticing the erotic dancing of the females on the dance floor when an upbeat, modern song came up. She also noted that many of the boys on the dance floor were all grabbing the girls by the waist and rubbing their groin area near a woman's bottom. Of course, for some reason, the females in the school seemed to enjoy this little form of "dancing". Zelda's eyes widened with disgust and horror, for she never expected people to be this improper in the future.

"Yeaaah. That's called grinding. You really don't want to do that. Hopefully, Lowell may have the decency of not taking advantage of you like that. Whatever you do, Z, do NOT let Lowell dance BEHIND you. That's how guys are able to do it, if they stand behind you and then they try to grind. However, a large majority of me tells me that he won't you off like that so easily. Knowing Lowell, he'll probably attempt it at least three times. Heh. You're better off finding a hot guy you can dance with, and doesn't try to flirt with you pathetically."

"Is that even possible in this school? From what I've observed, none of these guys are dancers. If they are, they are just attempting to have sex on the dance floor in this ballroom. Do the teachers even allow this sort of "dancing"?!? If my father discovered I was in such a… vile, impure place he'd send me home _straight_ away. Samus, I think I should just forget about it. This is NOT how I thought I'd spend my night. I thought I'd spend my night, having a perfect ball without royal subjects asking me what are the birth rates and the death rates of Hyrule, while they anxiously await my answer," the Princess of Hyrule said briskly, as she began to leave.

Samus immediately attempted to stop her. The bounty huntress grabbed the Princess' right arm before she could dare to make a step further.

"Z! You can't leave now. You paid a lot of money for this dance, you know that you can't leave me be!"

"Why not? I'm sure you'll have fun finding other ways to entertain yourself."

"Yes, that may be true… But I always have more fun when I'm with you!" Samus exclaimed, as she tried her best to give Zelda a pleading look, to convince her to stay. Zelda sighed heavily, as she considered what Samus said.

"I planned to… dance with Lowell, but at least… have it be a perfect waltz, and a perfect date if he asked… Even though I wouldn't enjoy it. I just wanted to have a "perfect" night where there were no worries about these sorts of things," Zelda commented slowly.

"Z, why do you always try to plan your ideas of "perfection"? You can't plan the future, you know. What's a dance if you don't have some sort of stuff you have to remember and unexpected thing pop up? Come on now… I know Lowell is a jerk when it comes to girls, but eh. Just try to have fun," Samus told her, as she noticed Marth heading in her direction. "Anyways, I gotta go. I see your stupid date right now. Later, chica!"

Samus slipped out of the sight, for she did not want to argue with Lowell for the night for once. Zelda only half smiled at what Samus had said, for she did not agree with Samus about not achieving "perfection". The Prince of Altea still came striding forward, in a very proud, yet arrogant way, as he admired the beauty of the wise Princess. He couldn't help but notice that she was like a mistakenly placed angel that fell from Heaven. No, she wasn't an angel. She was probably a goddess herself. No, not a goddess, she was-…

"Lowell!"

The sound of her soprano, trill-like voice made Marth jump out of his daydreams of Zelda. The azure-haired swordsman only smiled widely at the sight of Zelda walking over to him. It was as if dreams were becoming a reality for the Prince.

"Hello, Harkinian," Marth said, attempting to make his voice sound deeper and more grown up. "You look… ravishing tonight."

The compliment of Marth's words sent a tingling, bright pink color to Zelda's cheeks.

"No, I don't…"

Marth slyly smiled again.

"Oh yes, you do. Look, you're blushing even if I whisper in your ear, that you are lovely," Marth teased, as he dared to come closer and pinch the side of her left cheek.

It only made Zelda turn red like an apple, at his actions. Yet, the Princess wished that he would just stop. She was perfectly aware that she was sending the wrong messages to him. It was as if she was sending the message that she welcomed and appreciated his company, when it was clearly the opposite. The Prince soon regained a normal, gentleman-like position with his back straight up and spun forward in front of Zelda, as he bowed down with his left hand behind his back, and extended his right hand towards the Princess.

"Would you honor me with a dance?" Marth asked, as he did not take his eyes off her when bowing.

Zelda only was surprised by what Lowell had just said, even though she predicted it was coming. She slowly, and hesitantly, reached out for Marth's hand and finally took it with full grasp. The Altean Prince only smiled with wide regard, as he guided her to the dance floor. As if it was a perfect timing from a movie, the song switched from a dirty, hip hop song to a slow, waltz song for those who were considerate in the ballroom. Marth led her to the center of the ballroom, as he began to step to his side, while Zelda mirrored his steps.

"So, Princess Harkinian… Do like to dance? You seem to be pretty skilled at it," Marth commented, as he moved his body to the beat of the song.

Zelda only danced, with a pensive look upon her face, for she was careful choosing what words she would say to the Prince.

"Sort of," she said at first. She bit her lip, before coming up with a lie. "I only know how to dance properly since I regularly attend balls back at the castle. I don't normally enjoy the dances back home. They tire me out too much."

Zelda hated lying, but if it would save her from dancing too much with Marth, she was willing to risk it. According to what Impa said, she had a bad tendency of shifting her eyes around too much when she did. Her eyes did shift around, for she avoided eye contact from Marth, but the Prince seemed oblivious to Zelda's lie.

"Really? Hmm… I think after this song is done, we shall stop dancing if it really tires you out too much," Marth said, as Zelda's heart leapt up. "I think we shall go out to the courtyard and perhaps relax there, where no one can see us."

At the end of the last sentence, the Princess' heart plummeted back down to pit of her stomach.

"Uh… Okay, I may feel a little bit woozy afterwards. So, it may not be wise to go outside," Zelda briskly added.

"I think you can handle it. If you are feeling sick, it's always best to go outside for some fresh air, right?" Marth said, before he spun her around, and turned her back into the comfort of his arms.

Zelda immediately flushed at the sight of Marth holding her for that brief incident. She was sure to feel some piercing glares on her back from the members of the MRL. She abruptly moved back away from the Prince of Altea.

"Ah, sorry."

Marth's lower part of his face frowned a bit at the sight of the Princess forcefully releasing herself from his grasp.

"It's alright," he said, as he sighed heavily. He picked up her right hand, as he cradled it in the palm of his right hand. Zelda laid a nervous hand on his shoulder, as they continued from where they left off.

"So… What are you exactly interested in?" He turned around, and took a step forward.

"Erm," Zelda said hesitantly. The Hylian Princess never really talked to any males about what she was interested in, not even to her closest subjects in the court.

"I'm mostly interested in Hyrule's history. I find reading ancient Hylian books, talking about myths and legends to be quite fascinating. I also love reading a lot of literature written in the past. I also just find ancient Hylian to be just a beautiful, wonderful language overall. It's something I'm definitely interested in. A princess should always be interested in the history of her country."

Marth raised an eyebrow, for he realized that Zelda and him were quite opposite with what they enjoyed. He only continued to waltz with her before replying.

"Oh? I'm very interested in History and Languages as well. My father always has been teaching me ancient Altean," Marth commented, for he knew that statement was not true. He spun himself around with the guidance of Zelda's hand.

Zelda's eyebrows raised, for maybe… just maybe, Marth wasn't a bad person as well.

"Is that so? I've read a lot about the Altean history in my father's library. I find the fact that the Alteans had to fight a lot of civil wars on their own land to be quite interesting. I find it amusing to know that it took the Alteans twenty years to fight their lands off rebels and fellow neighboring countries in order to become their independent country, only to fight their land off their own people as well," Zelda commented, for a new spark of interested came through her mind at the sight of a potential friend.

Marth's hands were starting to sweat. Thank the Lords for the gloves he was given! He had not expected to get into a huge discussion about that certain topic. Zelda would probably not feel the palms of his hands give off that wet feel. His lie was soon going to be exposed if Zelda kept on pursuing this conversation.

"Uhh…Yeah! I know! I find the subject to be quite fascinating as well! I mean… It is always nice to know where your origins and stuff are. It's something to be proud of… I guess," Marth added, as he regretted for sounding a bit unconfident. He spun around, and stepped in front of Zelda, with his and her backs facing each other.

"You guess?!" Zelda repeated in somewhat disbelief, as she stepped to her side.

"History is a very important subject to learn. Without history, we'd be making a lot of the same mistakes over and over again. That's why we need the subject and we must learn about it," Zelda told him, as she smiled. She stepped back and forward again, to get closer with the Altean. "The histories of your people have one of the most interesting strings of eras that happened throughout time. I believe that you should be very very _very_ proud that you are an Altean."

It was now Marth's turn for his face to turn crimson. The Princess smiled warmly at him, for she felt that she was now enjoying his company more than ever. She thought perhaps maybe, that he would be a perfect person for what her father would be looking for in a future King of Hyrule. The Prince of Altea only turned a little bit more nervous and cautious than he normally was. Now she was digging deeper and deeper. It was as if she was digging through all these layers of his unknowingness of his own peoples' history and she was about to hit rock bottom. He only spun around again, as he regained the normal, waltzing position with Zelda.

"Hey, since you are studying ancient Altean... Do you mind speaking to some to me?" Zelda inquired, for she was now brimming with happiness. They danced to their right, and back to their left.

"Eh?"

"One of my tutors was teaching me ancient Altean, just for fun a couple of times. It's a beautiful language. It's as if you're whispering into the wind when speaking it. I love speaking it," Zelda added, as she happily twirled around.

Marth was almost going to fall over from hearing the Princess' request. It was one thing when she said that she wished for him to speak to her in his royal, ancient tongue, but now… having a conversation with her?! That was merely impossible! He perhaps would have gotten away with it, if he were to speak to her in completely, made up gibberish at the top of his head. This was just perfect for Marth. He had no way to escape from her now.

"I uh-… Yeah. I'm sorry, Harkinian. I think you misinterpreted what I said earlier. When I said that my father was teaching me ancient Altean, I meant he was _going_ to teach me," Marth said slowly, for he just now was able to lie again to get himself out of this mess.

"Oh," Zelda said, a little bit disappointed. Her eyes averted down, in somewhat despair.

"Yeah," Marth told her, somewhat relieved and yet somewhat self loathing of himself for coming up with that lie.

"Then I ask you of one thing. When was the date of when the Goron Hyruleans invaded your country?"

Marth paused for a moment, for he was late from stepping to his right.

"Um… Wasn't it September 29, 1316?"

"Wrong! You're wrong!" Zelda said forcefully, as the song ended. They stopped dancing in the center of the dance floor. The Princess placed her hands on her hips, as she furrowed her eyebrows.

"There _was no_ date when the Goron Hyruleans ever invaded your country! They never did, and never will! If anything, Goron Hyruleans are known to have a very strong relationship with the Alteans because the Gorons provided bombs for the Alteans when they fought against the attack of the mysterious Pokémon named Mewtwo. The Alteans were able to return the favor when the Cold Blood War broke out on Hyrule during 1293-1295!"

The Princess of Hyrule immediately started to stomp out of the ballroom on him, as Marth's face turned into complete surprise, for he never did expect Zelda to ask him a trick question. He followed after the Princess, as he tried to stop her.

"Harkinian! Wait! Please!"

"Forget it, Lowell!" Zelda called back at him, with her back turned and her front headed straight for the courtyard.

"Princess Harkinian! Please!"

"No! I won't give you another spare moment of my time for such liars!" Zelda yelled back.

Thankfully, none of the majority of the people on the dance floor was watching because they were all spun up with the magic of the Homecoming night. Marth still charged after the Princess, as he wished to calm her down from her anger.

"How did you know that I even lied to you?" Marth accused.

"It's because most Alteans often have their nostrils flare up when they lie! It's a given fact!" Zelda screeched at him, before violently pushing open the door to the courtyard.

"… My nostrils do NOT flare when I lie!" he yelled back. Contradictory to what he said, his nostrils did indeed flare up, signifying he did, indeed, lie after all.

* * *

She ran through the set of colorful paper streamers which were taped on the upper frame of the entrance of the courtyard. She sighed, for she was stressed. She was very disappointed in herself. How could she let herself to believe that sort of man? She thought she knew what kind of man Marth was, yet why did she innocently fall for his trap? She hated the fact she was always so naïve and innocent when it came to people around her. He had tricked her. Something that she found to be unforgivable. Samus was right about Marth Lowell after all. She felt like stabbing herself over and over again, for ever thinking that she could ever meet a person who would share the same interests as her. Tears were starting to well up in her eyes, as she knew it was impossible. Zelda always over critically analyzed herself, and she was perfectly aware of her own self rules and specific details of the interests she enjoyed. 

For once, Zelda thought she would maybe find that person she always wanted. That person who would not want to want her hand in marriage for neither her beauty nor land. But for the same interests, thoughts, and delights that they both said. And for once, that person would be a royal. A person that the court and her father would definitely approve of. No trouble would ever be needed. The white lights from the wired light bulbs wrapped around the pruned bushes, softly burned around the air. She rested her hands atop of a cement bench made out of bricks with her back hunched.

"Princess Harkinian," a voice said.

Zelda's face jerked up, for she spun around to see Marth standing there with an apologetic look upon his face. She tried to control her weeping now.

"Harkinian," he said again in a softer tone.

The Princess of Hyrule raised her chin up, as she tried to make herself give more of a strong impression. She didn't want to be seen as weak at this time.

"Princess Harkinian," he finally said in that same gentle tone. "I apologize for lying to you. You see…"

He paused, for he realized that this was going to be more difficult than he thought.

"The reason why I lied to you was because… Well, I wanted to get along with you. Very much. I mean, I just wanted to get to know you better, and I thought the best way of doing so would be to share similar interests."

Zelda only frowned, for she did not see why the Prince would lie about something silly like that if he only desired to be friends with her. He sighed again.

"Harkinian… What I'm trying to say to you… is that… I like you. A lot."

The future Queen only looked at him, a little bit bewildered. She opened her mouth to say something, in case she was mistaken, but he immediately cut her off.

"And when I mean by that I like you… I mean not in a friendship like way. I mean more of a "I'm in love with you" type way," Marth bluntly said, as he then averted his eyes to the ground and flushed bright red.

The two didn't say anything for a moment. Nothing could be heard at the moment, only the water trickling down from a fountain running nearby and the crickets chirping. Zelda bit firmly down on the bottom part of her teeth, as she somewhat scowled at him.

"I'm sorry, Lowell. I don't like you back in that way," she said. Marth only lifted his head at her.

"I certainly am sure that I don't like you in that way after from when you lied to me. I don't understand why you felt the need to do so. I understand that you wish to get along with me… Though, you don't need to lie to me about yourself to make me like you. I want to fall in love with a guy won't ever lie to me about what he says about himself," Zelda stated finally. She sighed, as she closed her eyes for a bit.

"If you wish to be friends with me… then maybe that will be alright. A part of me tells me that we may not get along so well. But having a casual conversation every now and then wouldn't hurt, now would it?" she added finally to not disappoint him.

When she finally faced him, she saw that Marth was not looking at her. He was staring at his feet, with his own eyebrows furrowed, ashamed and most of all, infuriated at himself for lying to the Triforce holder of Wisdom in the first place.

"… I understand," he replied finally.

Zelda smiled at him.

"You know… In some ways, we're even. I lied to you about dancing. I said that I didn't like it, when I actually do enjoy the activity. That is, if I'm not talking with royals, dukes, and presidents of a country when doing so."

"Eh?"

"Yes, I lied to you about that. I apologize as well. Do you forgive me?"

"Yes," Marth replied, almost automatically.

"Good. I apologize for the abrupt exit, but I must leave now. I wish to find the company of my friends. I'm sorry that I couldn't keep my promise for attending Homecoming with you for the first half of the dance. I really don't want to spend my time with any male. I only wish to have fun with my friends."

With the final word said, she swiftly left the courtyard. She passed by Marth so swiftly that he could feel that whip of air, brush against his right side when she walked past him to the entrance of the ballroom. Zelda wasn't aware though, that what she said would become a lie, and that she would find some other person who she'd want to spend the rest of the night with.

Marth, on the other hand, was only left there reflecting on what just happened. He couldn't believe it. Again, he was rejected. How could he _ever_ be rejected? He thought he would be able to just able to flirt with the Princess of Hyrule with normal ease and flow. However, he was wrong. Though, a part of him was excited. The fact that she resisted him just proved that she wasn't like that group of girls who were easily swayed by his appearance and actions. He thought he found the perfect girl. He smirked at himself. For this was the only beginning for Marth's adventure in making Zelda his. Marth was certainly going to not give up on Zelda Harkinian.

* * *

Zelda entered the ballroom again, as she made her way to the left side of the room, near where the food and drinks were served at the tables. She expected to find Samus warmly greeting her as soon as she walked in, alone, without Marth. However, she only found that Samus across the room with a lot of the guys from the senior year. Surrounding them, there were numerous blue covered, round tables. On which, Samus was arm wrestling with many of them. From the looks of it, Samus was winning every round of arm wrestling there was. She frowned at sight, for she wished that Samus would perhaps dance with her perhaps later. 

She also glanced to the front of the room, to see that Peach was indeed here as well. When she arrived to the dance was the question, however. Zelda had not noticed when Peach had come into the ballroom. Perhaps she had come in when she was dancing with Marth. It didn't matter. Zelda couldn't help, but notice how beautiful Peach's dress was. A soft, pale rose pink with a strapless dress with sequins all over it. It was more of a ballroom, evening gown that a simple dress like Zelda's. She wore white, elbow length gloves along with a pink, ribbon with a sequined rose attached to the left side of her neck. Her hair was styled in her normal, wavy way, giving her a sense of elegance. Though she was glamorous all over, Peach wasn't smiling. She still looked cautious and fearful of her surroundings.

Zelda frowned on the sight of the other Princess, for all Peach needed to make herself look _truly_ beautiful, even more beautiful than the MRL presidents, was to smile out of pure happiness. The Princess of Hyrule only sighed heavily, and shook her head with somewhat frustration. Her eyes scanned around the room, until they landed almost directly in front of her, to her left. That's when she noticed _him_.

Him. This ultra supreme, handsome dashing looking man. He was leaning against one of the many stone pillars in the ballroom, a plastic, red cup in his hand, though he was looking down at the floor in deep thought. He had a very hunched over position, as if he wished to not be a part of any social activity at all for the evening. Zelda wished to refrain herself from doing so, but she couldn't help but gawk at him. He had pointed ears just like her, with the small, Sheikah silver hoop earrings in his ear lobes. Deep brown, spiked hair and eyebrows, and his crystal blue orbs in his eye sockets certainly sparked some interest in Zelda's mind.

He had the most perfect, muscular build. It was as if he was made to do anything that involved any kind of athletic activity. He'd be perfect for dancing. He was alone. Right now, though, it felt as if there was this was a dream. Zelda felt as if she had dreamed this perfect image of a handsome boy leaning against a stone pillar in this ballroom, and it was coming to life. It felt so strange… yet familiar. For some reason, it felt as if it was destiny to see this man tonight, and she felt the need to meet him. In one of her dreams she had last night, she remembered piercing blue eyes. And that was it. Nothing else about the man's other facial features. It was only his eyes. She knew it was this young man though. She could just tell and feel it in her skin. She wanted to know more about him.

Link Wright did not say a word at that moment, for he was comparing what happened normally to today. So far, no girls had bugged him to dance. Instead, all of the females that ever swarmed around the punch bowl had not noticed him. Link loved it. It was as if he was invisible and nobody could see him. Everyone else had now found something to do to entertain themselves and he was the only person alone. He still was in his deep thoughts when he heard the clicking of high heeled shoes near the punch bowl. He closed his eyes for a moment, as he tried to block out the sounds of the Homecoming dance and pretend he was in his own little world.

However, he couldn't do it properly now. What ever on earth made Link not be able to block out the sound with his mind? His eyes were still closed, and he heard this girl move towards the punch bowl and swirl the silver scooper of punch around and pour it into a plastic cup. He expected to hear the tapping of the shoes head towards the dance floor or perhaps far across the room where all the tables were. But he was wrong. For some reason, the tapping of the shoes were coming closer and closer to him.

"You're the only handsome male here," the girl stated as if it was a given fact. She took a sip of her punch, and fanned herself with her left hand.

He didn't bother looking up; she was probably only going to flirt with him. Her voice didn't have that flirtatious tone, though. It was soft, gentle, filled with kindness, and somewhat musical.

"I really hate asking you to do this, when it should be the man who does it but… May I please have this dance with you?" she asked.

Link still didn't say anything.

"… Please? I really mean it. To me, you look oddly familiar," Zelda told him.

A pain of worry quickly electrocuted throughout Link's veins and his heart started to beat faster and faster. Droplets of sweat started to form across his brow, and he was worried that now his true name and identity was going to be revealed.

"Just a few moments ago, I felt as if this was part of dream that I had before… and it was coming into reality," Zelda told him more.

Link felt a sigh of relief cross through his mind, though he tried not to show it. She did not mention his real name or status in society. What was she trying to say to him? Was this some sort of lame, pick-up line that she was coming up with to make him dance with her? Or was she being serious about this? Whatever it was, it wasn't going to work. The Hero of Time would need more than just pathetic, seemingly honest words to make him dance. She laughed at what she just said.

"Hah. I bet I just sounded really strange right then, now did I? I know that you're probably interested in something silly like that. Dreams are can be quite a mystery, right?"

Link just pretended to not hear what she said.

"So… Will you please give me your final word? Will you dance with me? Please? Pretty please?" Zelda said, as she stepped forward towards Link. She placed her hands together in front of her face and slightly bowed as if she was begging for his response.

"… I can't dance," Link admitted, as he finally bothered to look up at her. He had to say, she was a pretty, young girl. But her face looked hauntingly familiar…

"You'll be fine. Come on, now. It's not a matter of not whether you can do it or not. You just need practice. I can't be on the dance floor by myself, now can I?" Zelda told him.

The song changed into a nice, mellow song which was perfect for a waltz. It was as if the song sounded made a person felt like treading on stars when dancing. Link raised an eyebrow at her for her strange, yet stubborn ways, as she began to pull on his right, free hand. Before he could make another step, he quickly dished away the red, plastic cup of punch in a nearby trashcan. She dragged him away on the middle of the dance floor. It was extremely hard for Link to not stumble on his own feet.

When they finally reached a nice, open spot to dance in the middle of the dance floor, Link almost bumped into Zelda, but she put his hands on his chest before he could make another move forward. He was about to say something, when Zelda started to place Link's hand behind her back under arm, and held his hand up. She nodded her head, and immediately started to step to her right, and sweep to her left. Link, of course, did not understand the normal steps of waltz, for he was clumsy with stepping. Even when Zelda tried to spin away from Link, and spin back closer to him, she only ended up almost injuring Link's nose, for she came crashing back into Link.

"Screw this. I'm not dancing," Link abruptly said, as he broke off the position for the waltz.

He was about to leave, when something came over Zelda like an unknown force. She immediately grabbed one of his hands. And spun around with his hand, as she faced in front of him. He wasn't going to avoid dancing with her that easily.

"Come on. Please waltz with me for this song and the next, okay? That's all I ask of you," Zelda said.

Before Link's brain could react, Zelda stepped to her side again, as he forgot to do so. She kept on stepping to his side, and he just stood there, with his hand connected to hers and looked confused. As she regained the normal position of waltzing, she and him both finally stepped to the side, until they bumped into a nearby couple.

"Watch it!" The girl said.

"Yeah! Make sure you know where you're stepping!" The guy sneered at them.

Zelda and Link just said nothing, for Link was tempted to slap the guy's face, and Zelda was tempted to use her magic on the girl. Zelda faced Link for a moment, as the Hero of Time did so as well. The Princess of Destiny only smiled warmly at him, as they both felt as if time had stopped. She gazed deeply into his eyes with that smile still stricken on her face. She stepped right. He stepped right. She stepped left. He stepped left. It was right then when Link felt that he was in synch with the music and actually getting all of the moves. She spun around in the arm length that Link provided, as she stepped back, close to Link. She did it again for another two times, and the Hero of Time did not mess up even once. On her third spin away and to Link, the two came close together, and they stopped their position just for a moment.

They heard fireworks. The two Hylians both looked up, as they did see from the ceiling there were, indeed, fireworks in the sky. Link smiled in a natural, warm yet rare way, as Zelda couldn't help but smile at the fact her dance partner was smiling. The song finally ended, as the two both snapped back into reality. Zelda curtsied formally at Link, as he bowed back at her. It was a sign of good partnership when dancing. Another nice, slow waltzing song was beginning, as Zelda smiled back at Link.

"One more dance… please?" Zelda requested.

Her eyes were pleading as if she wanted to stay with him forever. Link couldn't help, but notice the familiar, blue eyes. For a moment, it came over him like a salty, sea wave kissing his lips. He had seen those eyes before. Deep from his sleep…

"I guess I have no choice, now do I?" Link sighed, as he took Zelda's hand again.

They both stepped to their left side.

"I never had a chance to ask you what your name is," Zelda commented.

"… It's Arashi," Link lied again.

Zelda raised her eyebrows, as she spun around.

"Arashi? … That means storm, doesn't it?"

Link hesitantly nodded.

"It's a lie, right?"

Link only looked at her, bewildered at what she said.

"You know… Something about you makes me feel that you suit that name quite well only for tonight. Though, it doesn't seem to be your real name."

"What do you exactly mean by that?" Link snarled immediately, as he and Zelda had their backs facing each other and stepped to their right, and faced each other again.

"Because I told you… I've seen you before," Zelda told him, as she stepped back. "Not in person, but in my dreams. And whenever I saw your eyes in my dreams… you didn't seem as cold hearted as you do now."

Link froze for a moment, for he was trying to comprehend what she had just told him.

"Storms are cold, violent, and unfriendly."

"How are storms unfriendly?" Link inquired immediately.

"It's because they contain wind, thunder, lighting, or all of them. And I don't really think that anyone in the world would think of wind, thunder, or lighting as "friendly". As I said, you seem to that type."

"How so?"

"Your eyes are piercing…" She murmured softly near his left ear.

Link said nothing for a moment, for he felt that phrase sticking to him like glue.

"When I saw you from one of my other dreams… you seemed a bit troubled, but nonetheless, you told me…" Zelda said, as she came closer and whispered it in his ear.

"Bagu amkanas taiu."

He didn't know what she said, but whatever it was. For some reason, he felt some kind of warm feelings in his heart when she said that. It was if she had cast a spell over him, and as if shards of affection were striking his brain. He was left speechless.

"Z!" A voice said, waking the two Hylians back into reality.

Zelda and Link both looked around, for they wondered who called out something like that to them. The Princess noticed the blond over Link's shoulder, and smiled at her.

"I'm sorry… Our dance ends here, Arashi. Good-bye."

Zelda curtsied yet again, as she turned her back to leave.

"… Wait."

She turned around and faced him, for he just wanted to look at her face only once more. She cocked her head to the side, an appearance of questioning of what he wanted.

"… I never got your name," he rapidly, yet randomly spat out.

She smiled at him once again, with her normal, warm smile.

"It's Zelda."

"… Just Zelda?"

She shook her head.

"Mmm. It's not… But it's best to leave it at that," she told him. She smiled, and left.

Link stood there for a moment, as he stared at her figure as she bounced happily off to one of his Spanish classmates, he recognized as Samus.

He didn't understand. The way she smiled at him wasn't one of those flirty smiles that he received every single day. It was warm and filled with understanding, like the sun. Every time he even thought of that girl he just danced with, the only thing that he could strongly remember was her smile. What kind of tenderness was there to that girl? She also called him "handsome". It was a blessing, yet a mystery at the same time. Normally most females would just say he was "sexy". It was as if she wanted nothing from him, but just softness in his heart.

"_Zelda… Huh?"_ Link thought to himself. _"That name… it means… gray woman warrior. Doesn't it?"_

A warrior… A female warrior…

"_You know, Link… Someday, you're going to meet a female warrior. She's going to be perfect for you. That's what has been predicted. He told me to tell you that you shouldn't be entirely fooled by her appearance. It's destiny that you'll meet her. I'm not always going to be a part in your life anymore. That's why… I'm not the one for you…"_

* * *

"Z! Where have you been this entire time?" Samus asked. 

The Princess of Hyrule tried to run as fast as she could in her shoes, but it was hard not to trip over herself if she did so.

"Sorry, Samus!"

"My gosh… I just won ¥ 10,000 from arm wrestling all of those guys back there! I wanted to tell you about it as soon as I could! Sheesh! All of those guys are pathetic and weak!" Samus complained, loudly. She yawned and stretched her arms high into the air.

"Man, this dance BLOWS."

Zelda quickly sauntered to the punch bowl and back, with another cup of overly sugary berry punch in her hand.

"Why do you think that?"

"Because there obviously isn't that much stuff to do except dance."

"So?"

"I dance… But only when a good song comes on. Not some waltzing, R&B, or rap shit comes up! I like it only when they have like… rock songs, you know?"

"… R&B? Rap? Rock?"

"… You don't know any musical genres that start with r's?"

Zelda shook her head.

"Oh yeah. Never talked to you about music genres in the present! Well, you see…"

It took another great deal of explaining for Samus to fully explain all the different genres of music to Zelda.

"Oh? Is that right?"

"Heck yeah!" Samus exclaimed, as she took Zelda's cup from her hands and took a sip from it. Zelda only raised an eyebrow for her eccentric behavior. "Heh. Sorry about that. Too lazy to get my own cup."

Zelda only shook her head at Samus.

"What?!? Like I said! I'm too lazy to get my own goddamn cup of punch! Goddamnit, what is in that stuff anyways? Pure sugar and artificial fruit juice? And… Oh! Look, Z! It's Peach!"

The Princess spun around, as she was indeed sure to see the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom stepped closer to the two.

"Yo, Peach! Where have you been all night? Have you been wandering around about? Anyways, girl. I gotta tell you this! I was just arm wrestling practically all the guys in the-"

"… Is it fun?" She abruptly cut Samus off.

"Eh?" Both Samus and Zelda asked.

"Is it really fun to be here?" Peach questioned.

"Hmmm… Maybe," Samus said, as she took a while to think about it.

"I believe it is. It's always nice to go out and have fun with the people you know at school… right?" Zelda told her, as she smiled at Peach.

Peach said nothing, but only looked away from Samus and Zelda's eyes.

"Hey… If there's anything wrong, you can go ahead and tell us," Zelda told her.

"Truth is-…"

"ALRIGHT PEOPLE! IT'S TIME TO ANNOUNCE THE HOMECOMING KING AND QUEEN! THE VOTES ARE IN!" A senior from the DJ table roared in the microphone. A large feedback sound deafened everyone's ears as they all covered their ears and complained.

"HAHAHA! SORRY ABOUT THAT! I DIDN'T MEAN TO DO ANYTHING!"

"Hey, Samus, who did you vote for the Homecoming Queen?" Zelda asked as everyone formed as circle near the dance floor.

"Me? Hah! I voted for you, Z!"

"Really? Hmph. I don't think I'll get it though…"

"Yeah, why not? Didn't you vote?"

"Actually… No, I didn't."

Samus raised her eyebrows as more and more students were filling the circle.

"Why not? You were occupied by that brown haired hottie that I saw you dancing with just now?" Samus teased, as she winked at Zelda.

"No! No… it's… something else?" Zelda said, her cheeks burning hot red.

Samus only smirked in delight.

"Oh no it isn't! Girl, you are SO telling me every single detail right now!"

"But-"

"No 'but's'! I wanna know what happened! Come on, girl!"

"Um-"

"ALRIGHT! IT'S TIME TO ANNOUCE THE WINNERS OF THIS YEAR'S HOMECOMING KING AND QUEEN!"

"Later, alright?" Zelda told her, as Samus scoffed.

"Whatever you say, girlfriend."

"WE'LL BEGIN TO ANNOUCE THE HOMECOMING KING!"

The lights were dramatically turned off, as there was a spotlight flashing around the crowd of high school students.

"AND THE HOMECOMING KING IS… PRINCE MARTH LOWELL OF ALTEA!!!"

The spotlight finally landed on Marth, as he gave a fake smile to the crowd and nodded.

"Heh. I always win every year, now don't I?" Marth asked two both Roy and Link, standing on both of his sides.

Roy nodded.

"It's always the same, now isn't it?" He inquired, as the senior announced was ready to cut all of the murmuring between students off.

"THE WINNER OF HOMECOMING QUEEN IS… MEGAN ANDERSON!!!"

"Wow, surprise of the day, is it not?" Samus sarcastically commented to Peach and Zelda, as she forcefully clapped. Zelda and Peach nodded their heads, as they watched more of the scene take place.

Megan Anderson grinned broadly, for it was as if she knew she was going to win. She was wearing a small, black form fitting dress, showing off her long lanky legs and her breasts. She sauntered over to the DJ table with Marth, as she had seduction planned in her mind.

"Oh my God… Roy… Kill me," he said, as he was beginning to walk towards the DJ table.

Roy shrugged. "You'll have to deal with it, buddy!"

The two both walked over the DJ table, as the DJ whipped out two plastic, silver crowns. A female and a male senior volunteer both placed the crows over the King and Queen's head.

"AND NOW IT WILL BE TIME FOR THE HOMECOMING KING AND QUEEN TO DANCE!"

Megan Anderson smiled broadly, with seduction in her eyes.

"Shall we?" she asked. She extended a hand towards him, as she batted her eyelashes.

Marth forcefully grinned, as he took Megan's hand.

"Just one quick dance."

Megan nodded, as if she understood what he was saying.

The DJ played a slow, stepping romance dance, as the two began to dance. All the girls from the MRL Fan Club sighed dreamily as if they were watching their Goddess dance with their God.

"She's so lucky!" All of the girls from the MRL club sighed.

Megan only smirked at herself for winning Homecoming Queen. She was perfectly aware of how popular she was, and how she could easily manipulate everyone for voting for her.

"Marth, you look very sexy tonight," Megan commented, as she seductively smiled at him.

"Uhh… Thank you, Anderson. You look… nice as well," Marth said, for he felt himself stumbling over his own feet and words.

Megan's mind felt a little bit disappointed, but nonetheless she tried to show her gratitude. She smiled at him, as she spun around.

"Thank you very much, Marth!"

"Uhh… Yeah."

"So I noticed that your date abandoned you early tonight… What happened? Did she crush your heart or something?"

"… Erm… Yeah, you could say that," Marth said, as he wished that Megan wouldn't talk about it right now.

"If she did, I'll be sure to pay her back. You're too good for her. You certainly aren't the type that should be hurt over some ugly looking girl," Megan commented. They both stepped to the side, as the song continued.

"She's not ugly!"

"… My, you really do seem to like her though, now do you?" She took a risk, and dared to step towards Marth, as they continued to dance. She feverishly looked into his eyes.

"Marth… You're very, very handsome," she told him, as she sighed.

"… That's wonderful to know, Anderson," Marth told her, as he tried to hide the sarcasm in his tone of voice.

"You really should stay away from someone like Harkinian. She's no good. You know I've heard from Rachael that-"

"I don't really care about her background that much, Anderson," Marth abruptly said in an unpleasant way.

"Well, whatever."

The song was starting to slow down, revealing that their dance was going to be ending soon.

"Anderson… Let's cut the BS. Look, I know that you like me a lot and all that, but… I'm not interested in you. I'm just not. I know I'm probably hurting you, but there's nothing I can do about it," Marth said.

He bowed formally, and the song ended. He looked at Megan's brown eyes, for she seemed to have some sort of shock, yet a flame of fury was starting to ignite in her eyes. She stood there, as she felt rage collecting inside of her, because she would declare Marth Lowell as hers.

"Give it up, Anderson," Marth told her. "I'm not interested, and you should probably go out with someone you like the most."

He bowed again, as he began to make his exit.

"I'll never give up," she angrily stated, before he was fully out of his sight.

Marth halted for a little while, debating on whether he should say something else. He just decided to brush that statement off and continue walking.

"Never… Never ever," she whispered to herself.

She would do everything in her power to make sure that Zelda would never end up with Marth or anyone. She would destroy Zelda Harkinian so much, that she would wish that she could never see the light of earth again. Yes, that was exactly what Megan Anderson was planning. Life would be hard for Zelda and her two other friends. As soon as the dance would end, Megan would go straight into plotting life's failures for that Samus, Zelda, and Peach. She would make sure that Marth would be hers, Roy would be Rachael's, and Link would be Caitlin's.

Love and youth are unpredictable. Though, it was only the beginning… of an unexpected change.

* * *

**Review… Please? I really want everyone's opinions, por favor!  
****  
Oh yeah, the sentence that Zelda whispered in Link's ear was supposed to be ancient Hylian. Credit goes to Kasuto Dot Net for the whole ancient Hylian language. You'll find out what the sentence means later!  
**

**Love,**

**-BKP**


	13. Bad Sun

**Oh my gosh. Thank you all who reviewed. You have no idea how grateful I am for your opinions, reactions, and criticism! Life is just dandy!**

* * *

"**The red thread seems like a made-up dream, But I want to believe from the bottom of my heart that,**

**I am right for you, you as well are right for me, There's no need to care about anything else,**

**When I go quiet I can't do anything since I am lame in pretending, My breath touches your ear, we both 'Ah',**

**Not continuing the ABC; that wouldn't do, would it? Since what's inside this heart is different isn't it**

**My youth is not like that, I want to end it with a burning heart, Surely if it's not you it won't do**

**I am a bad sun." – Bad Sun by Orange Range.**

**Chapter 13 – Bad Sun**

"PERMANENT LAB PARTNERS?!" The entire Biology class exclaimed.

Mrs. Pierce nodded, as she smirked.

"That's right! I've decided on an all year round Bio project!"

"Mrs. Pierce, I hate to ask this, but like, could you explain to all of us why we… like, need this?" Caitlin Russell asked rudely.

"Well, Russell. What do you expect? What does the word "biology" mean?"

Samus' hand shot straight up in the air.

"Yes, Aran?"

"The word "bio" means life itself, and "logy" means study of something. So, of course, biology would be the study of life," Samus explained to the whole class.

Mrs. Pierce smiled at Samus.

"Wonderful explanation, Aran! I couldn't have explained it better myself!" Mrs. Pierce said.

"Nerd!" A threesome of the MRL Fan Club members muttered to themselves about Samus.

"What was that!?" Samus snapped at them, followed by a death glare.

"Nothing!" The threesome of the MRL chirped.

"Aran, is there anything going on between you, Wilkinson, Boyer, and Finnegan?"

"No, Mrs. Pierce."

"Alright, then. Let me explain more about this project. As said on your pink handout, the project is worth 1,000 points and about one eighth of your final grade. Your job is to help grow a type of life, and care for it. You're provided to give me monthly updates of how the condition of your living being is, and what stage it is.

"Depending on what section we are on in this course, we'll cover some specific information on what goes on. For example, when we're learning about cells, you'll take a sample of cells from your living being and be sure to observe it, and its different cells. When we cover the DNA section, we'll take a sample of its DNA, and you'll learn about how to take DNA samples from others.

"At the end of the year, every lab couple will be sure to give an oral presentation on what they did for their life they had, the different stages on how that life grew, what the cells looked like, what was the sample of DNA like, and etc. And all of you will be sure to hand in your own, individual lab report on what you did and your reflections of this project. Make sense?"

The whole class nodded their heads.

"Good. Anyways, since you are working with different life species, I've carefully decided to arrange your lab partners. I've talked with some fellow teachers, and we all agree there should be a lot more social interaction between genders in the Super Smash Brothers High School. So… All two partner groups will have a girl and a boy in them," Mrs. Pierce said.

All of the MRL Fan Clubs raised their heads up with attentiveness. They all murmured excitedly at the idea of being paired up with either Marth, Roy, or Link.

"But! As I said, I've _carefully_ chosen your partner, and please make sure that you are actually _working_ when we all head down to the library. Mrs. Goldenseal has given us the privilege of using the library for this period. Just remember to keep the noise down there and also work on your project, because we don't want to disturb anyone in Study Hall, okay?"

"Yes, Mrs. Pierce!" The whole class responded.

Mrs. Pierce responded with a smile.

"Excellent! Be sure to remember that this is a GROUP project. Meaning that not one person should be doing all the work. You and your partner both hold account and responsibility for getting a passing grade."

She cleared her throat, as she shuffled to the next page of the packet of papers she was holding in her hands.

The girls were becoming impatient with non-stop butterflies in their stomach.

"Your assignment for this Friday will be your decision what kind of life you'll research and study for your project. I expect that BOTH partners agree on what they wish to study. Remember, you guys are researching this for the whole year, and pick something that you like and you're interested in learning. What you write in your lab report reflects the subject you study and your voice."

The girls in the classroom were practically falling asleep with what Mrs. Pierce was rambling on about.

It already had been a day since Homecoming, and everything in life was resuming the way it should be in the Super Smash Brothers High School. It was as if nobody remembered that night where everyone dressed up and had fun. Or so most people thought…

"Alright. I'll begin to announce your partners alphabetically, starting with the ladies… Megan Anderson?"

Megan's felt her body straighten up in a more attention towards the teacher.

"Yes, Mrs. Pierce?"

"Your partner will be Alex Calderwood," she replied with a smile.

Megan's brown eyes shot towards the direction of her partner's seat. Her mouth opened with a slight disgust as she noticed the grime on Alex's hair and the dirt under his finger nails. His school uniform was all wrinkled like tissue paper, which made Megan wonder how his school uniform shirt could be so wrinkly, and there was food stains all over his navy blue pants and his white, uniform shirt. He sniffled heavily, as he pushed back his black curtain of hair behind his ear, and smiled at her with a very green-black toothy smile.

Her nose wrinkled in disgust.

"Mrs. Pierce!" she began to object.

"Hold on, Anderson. Let me get to another person."

"Elizabeth Aodent?"

A blond haired girl raised her head at Mrs. Pierce.

"Your partner will be Paul Irvington."

The blond haired girl nodded, as she smiled at her good looking lab partner.

"… Gargh! Mrs. Pierce! I have to go the bathroom like… NOW!" Samus called out, without raising her hand and a nervous look plastered all over her face.

Mrs. Pierce crossed her arms, in slight disappointment.

"Next time, Aran, please raise your hand."

"Okay… GOT IT!" Samus cried, as she dashed out of the Biology classroom.

"And Samus isn't here… So I'll say who her partner is once she gets back," Mrs. Pierce muttered to herself.

Mrs. Pierce continued on with listing other people's lab partners, as she received both negative and positive feedback from the people around them.

"Gosh, I wonder who the hell my partner is," Marth muttered to Roy from his right side. "I'm glad that I don't get Anderson as a partner!"

Roy shrugged.

"You think you're the only one? I'm wondering who mine is as well. Hopefully, it's NOT Livingston."

"Rachel Livingston?" Mrs. Pierce asked, as if on cue.

The snobbish, MRL president with curves faced the Biology teacher with her hopes of being with Roy. Her face was beaming. Roy's stomach turned inside out.

"… Your partner will be Evan Hahn."

Rachel's face immediately turned to disappointment and anger at the fact that she didn't get the person she wanted to be with. Roy sighed with relief.

"Thank GOD!' He whispered to Marth and Link.

Marth smirked at his buddy, while Link remained cool and kept silent from across the lab table.

"Hmph. Now that just leaves Link. Hopefully, he won't get stuck with Russell."

"Gee, thanks, Marth. As if I didn't already know that," Link commented, coldly and sarcastically.

"Hey, whatever, man. Damn. I really wish I'll get Harkinian as a partner," Marth said to both Roy and Link.

Roy just sighed in an exasperated way, as if he was growing tired of his friend's attempts to seduce the Princess of Hyrule, while Link just quirked an eyebrow.

"Zelda Harkinian?" Mrs. Pierce announced. The blond Princess' eyes shot up at the teacher, as she raised her hand.

Link felt his body stiffen for a moment. Zelda… That name from a night ago…

"Heh. Looks like now we'll see if you'll get her or not," Roy told Marth.

Marth wily smirked, as he felt confident that Zelda would become his lab partner. There was a long pause at that time, as if Mrs. Pierce was announcing the most important thing on earth.

"… Your partner will be Link Wright."

The MRL presidents gritted their teeth as soon as they heard that. They were obviously envious of the fact that Zelda had a connection with Marth, but now Link as well. The whole class focused their attention to the blond, sitting in the center lab table of the room. Marth had an outraged look upon his face, as if he was ready to punch something. Even Link spun around from the front of his seat; to see who Mrs. Pierce was talking about.

It _was_ her. There was no doubt of it. For some reason though, she looked lovelier than she did at the dance…

"Wha?"

"Harkinian, your partner is Link Wright. Please stop looking at me like I killed something. Alright now… Jhoti Hayes?"

"Goddamnit, Link!" Marth said, as he threw his pencil down on his binder. He titled himself back in his lab chair, and rested his head on the back of the seat. He crossed his arms, as he stressfully sighed. "Ah! I wish I could have gotten Harkinian as a lab partner… You're so lucky…"

Zelda sat still and silently after her partner had been announced, as she thought over this information. She was speechless. The only thing she remembered about this Link person was the fact that he rudely bumped into her in the hallways. He was the most arrogant, cold-hearted bastard ever! How would she ever deal with him? She was doomed to work with him for the rest of the year!

Link Wright turned back to his friends, after he was done observing that look on Zelda's face. She had this confused look at first at the announcement of the news. Though, when she looked down at the lab table, thinking it over, with her brow began to furrow and her face turning into somewhat grimace. It was clear to Link that she did not enjoy his company. He only shifted his eyes towards his materials on the lab table, for he seemed to have a slightly frowned figure on his face. Not of annoyance though… Out of disappointment…

"Link? Are you okay?"

Link's eyes shot up to Marth.

"You looked kind of sad for a moment…" He commented slowly, as Roy nodded.

He didn't say anything.

"It's nothing. My mind is probably tied up all of this stress going on."

"Like with what?" Roy asked.

"Like… I don't know… Stuff."

Roy and Marth faced each other with questioning looks upon their faces.

"Whaaattt? You know, Link, we really haven't gotten that much work these days. Is something else bothering you?" Roy said.

"No. It's nothing," Link assured them forcefully.

"… Okay," Marth and Roy both said, as they still were confused for why Link was this way.

"Peach Toadstool?" Mrs. Pierce asked once more. She was finally reaching the end of her list of assigned lab partners.

The nervous Princess' eyes lifted up to the Biology teacher, as a tremulous fear shook upon her.

Mrs. Pierce tried to smile reassuringly. Though, it didn't seem to work. It only made the Princess tremble even more.

"Your partner will be Roy Flores."

Peach's eyes widened with shock, as if she saw Death itself coming for her. The MRL Fan Club gritted their teeth even more as they sent more and more icy, hard glares at both Peach and Zelda. The Pink Princess only whimpered with fear and shock crossing over her mind.

"Hey, Roy," Marth began to say. "Looks like your partner is that Toadstool girl over there."

Roy titled his head to the right to get a better view of his lab partner. He raised an eyebrow.

"She's such a wallflower," Marth commented.

The redhead noticed the depressing look upon her face, as if this was the worst thing on earth for her. He couldn't notice her nervous eyes shifting around, as if she was a jittery firefly in a glass jar.

"Yeah… She quite is," Roy agreed as well. He sighed stressfully as well; worrying that Peach would put little effort in this project. "This looks like it's going to be interesting."

"Blaire Zhao? Your partner is Timothy Walkers," Mrs. Pierce finished off reading from her list. She glanced upwards to the whole class, whom were all muttering to themselves about their lab partners.

"If there are any questions about anything dealing with the project, please feel free to ask now," the Biology teacher said.

Marth uncrossed his arms for a moment.

"…. Mrs. Pierce never told me who my lab partner was," Marth realized, as he looked at Roy and Link both shrugged their shoulders.

Megan Anderson's hand shot straight up in the air, with annoyance on her face.

"Mrs. Pierce!"

"Yes, Anderson?"

"I don't understand how I could like-"

"I'm back!" Samus announced, as she walked into the classroom and took her seat.

"Ah, yes, Aran. Excellent timing! It's now the time I tell you who your partner is," Mrs. Pierce reported, with both Samus and Mrs. Pierces faces beaming with happiness.

"You'll be paired up with Marth Lowell."

Samus immediately dropped her smile, as she felt herself lunge a little bit forward in shock. Megan Anderson's jaw and hand held in the air also dropped, as well with the MRL presidents. Marth Lowell's eyes nearly popped out of his sockets. The whole class was staring at Samus, in the center of the Biology lab.

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTT?!"

Mrs. Pierce just smiled.

"Yes, Aran. Your partner is Marth Lowell."

"… That's not possible!" She stood up from her seat, and walked around the lab table to stand in front of Mrs. Pierce.

"It is possible, Aran. I assigned all of your partners personally myself."

"But I don't GET ALONG with Lowell!"

"That's NOT THE CASE!" A voice injected. Both Samus and Mrs. Pierce turned their heads to the right, back corner of the room. Marth Lowell stood up, pushing the two palms of his hands on the face of the table. Anger was written all over his face.

"SHE doesn't get along with ME!" Marth clarified.

Samus gritted her teeth and a forehead vein appeared on the back of her head. He was being an asshole again.

"Lowell, shut your face, before I slap you!" Samus snarled at him.

"Now now, children!" Mrs. Pierce began to say, though Samus and Marth pretended that they didn't hear her.

"Oh? You're going to slap ME?" Marth inquired, with a feigned bemused face. The muscles on his face loosed, as he glared at her. "How would you like be sent to the principal's office, then?"

"You suck, Lowell, do you know that? I really hope that you die sooner than you're fated to do so!"

"Well, you know what, Aran? You're going to die someday as well! From what? Oh yeah! Failure!"

"You think I'm a failure? At WHAT?! Soccer? Well, guess what, Lowell… I BEAT your team when we were practicing yesterday!"

"Aran! There's no need to get so hot with him…" Mrs. Pierce commented, as they seemed to drop their mouths.

"WHAT?!" Marth and Samus both ejected out of their mouths. Their faces turned red with embarrassment.

"How could you…" Samus began to say.

"Think… that WE-" Marth added.

"Like-" Samus said, with a bright red flush on her cheeks.

"Each-" Marth also said.

"Other…" Samus muttered.

"THAT-" Marth emphasized with disgust all over his face.

"Way!?" Samus finished, as she couldn't believe what Mrs. Pierce said.

The whole class nodded their heads as well, for they would never believe that Marth and Samus would ever have feelings for each other.

Mrs. Pierce raised an eyebrow, as her oval glasses slid a bit of from the bridge of her nose. She looked up from her glasses.

"… Whatever makes you think that I meant THAT kind of hot? I meant hot as in angry. Sheesh! We haven't even covered the sexual reproduction section, and you guys are already talking about desires!" Mrs. Pierce said.

A pang of reality and realization hit both Marth and Samus. They finally realized that Mrs. Pierce's definition of "hot" could work in the sentence she said earlier. They both felt incredibly stupid and self loathed themselves for that. Their faces turned bright red, like autumn's first color of leaves.

"Alright class, any more questions before we go to the library?"

Megan Anderson's hand shot up again.

"Yes?"

"Could I like… change partners?"

"I'm afraid, that I can't do that Anderson. I've already decided, and I can't change it now."

"Well, can't I just switch partners with Aran? Since she OBIVOUSLY doesn't like working with Marth, she can work with my partner, Calderwood. I'll work with Marth!"

"Yeah, I'd like to switch partners too with Toadstool!" Rachel added.

"Me three with Harkinian!" Caitlin also chirped in.

"I'm sorry, I said NO," Mrs. Pierce reported.

"But WHY!?" The MRL Presidents whined.

"Because I SAID so!" Mrs. Pierce said, anger rising.

"Girls, in the future… You'll work with people that you obviously dislike. Though, you have to set aside your PERSONAL differences in order to work with them. When the Super Smash Brothers High School was established, we did not just want all of you to receive a proper education. We wanted you to grow up as beautiful beings, so that every beautiful flower can fully blossom inside of you. You're all potential beings to become the most beautiful people in the world to lead our nation."

Zelda gawked at Mrs. Pierce's inspiring words… Flower… blossom… Was this why her mother wanted her to attend this school?

"… So, can we like… change partners?" Caitlin asked, clearly not understanding anything Mrs. Pierce just said.

Mrs. Pierce felt as if a hundred pound weight fell on her head.

"I just said: 'No'… What makes you think I'll change my mind?"

"But Mrs. Pierce!" Megan began to whine.

"No 'but's! This is LIFE, Anderson. Life isn't always fair, and you can't get what you want. Just suck it up, and LIVE with it!"

Megan's face still had a look of annoyance and anger stricken all over her face. She cringed with disgust at the fact she would be working with Alex. She sharply inhaled, her glare clean with a vengeful spirit. She would be sure to never let anyone else but her and her friends get close to Marth, Roy, and Link outside the classroom and the work.

"Fine," she accepted in a bitter, resentful way.

* * *

"Please sign in, Liz," Mrs. Goldenseal said to the Biology lab teacher. With a flick of her pen, the Biology expert signed the form for the library.

"The library is all yours now. Please make sure your students stay quiet, so the kids in Study Hall don't get distracted with what they are working on. Other than that, I'll be right here around the counter in case you or any of your students need my help."

"Thank you, Renee," Mrs. Pierce said. She turned around to the students behind her.

"Alright, class. Work productively now! Mrs. Goldenseal has arranged the table and seats, so there are two seats per table so you can sit with your lab partner. Do NOT move the chairs around to another table, because we have to leave the library exactly the way we entered it. I want all of you to be FOCUSED, so you can actually get some work done. Okay, got it? Good!"

The class unwilling shuffled about, as they headed off to different sections of the room, and began to work.

"I want to sit over there," Marth said to Samus, as if it was a command rather than a wish.

"Well, guess what, pretty boy… I want to sit over THERE!" Samus said, as she pointed over to the far corner of the room, opposite of where Marth wished to sit.

A frown and anger was inscribed all over Marth's face as soon as Samus said that.

"No. I want to sit over there!"

"Are you fucking serious, Lowell? Mrs. Pierce JUST said that you can't get everything you want in life. Now deal with it! If I'm working with you, I'm going to sit where I want."

"Just because she said that doesn't mean that it doesn't apply to you as well! You can't get what you want as well!"

"Since when did you make all the decisions for me!?" Samus angrily asked.

"I don't know… Maybe because you did so first?" Marth inquired with wit.

"I hate you, Lowell! I swear to God, I'm going to fucking KILL YOU!"

"FINE! DO SO! I WOULD RATHER DIE THAN WORK WITH YOU, ARAN!"

"YOU THINK THAT I WANT TO WORK WITH YOU AS WELL? HELL NO!"

"HEY! LOWELL! ARAN!" Mrs. Pierce reported.

The petite teacher dashed in front of them in less than a second as she looked up at her two students.

"I. Said. That it would be _quiet_ in the library. What part of that can you not respect? Look around you! Look at everyone you're disturbing from their work!"

Following what she said, the blond and the blue haired prince glanced around them in the library, to see that Mrs. Pierce was right. Everyone was staring at the two, a few of whom were annoyed at the fact they were arguing so loudly and another large majority of females glaring at Samus for arguing with Lowell.

They both felt a sweat drop coming out of the side of their heads, for they had apologetic looks upon their faces.

"Sorry," Samus said to the kids in the class.

"I apologize for my rude behavior," Marth told the groups around him.

"Look," Mrs. Pierce said, as they both turned back to her.

"I don't know _what_ you two have against with each other, and what kind of "rivalry" you have, but I don't care. I want you guys to get the job _done._ I don't care how much you hate each other, and what you guys think of this project, I want it _done_ and _completed_. It doesn't matter how you do, just DO it. Is that two much to ask from you guys?"

"No, Mrs. Pierce," Samus and Marth murmured, as they both felt ashamed for what they've done.

"Good. I also am grading you on how well you get with your partner." At the sound of that, Marth and Samus' eyes were almost popping out of their sockets. "Now get to work!"

The two both took a seat near the window, as they placed their materials on the table, and took a seat.

"Okay, fine. So what type of life you want to work with?" Marth asked.

"I want to work with Pichus."

"No, I don't want to work with those. I'd rather work with Jigglypuffs rather than those," Marth rudely commented.

"Then why the FUCK did you ask me that question!?" Samus growled like a lioness.

"Well, I don't know! Mrs. Pierce wanted us to "get along"!" Marth said.

"Like the hell I'd get along with you," Samus reported, as she turned to her side and crossed her legs and arms.

"Yeah, I know," Marth agreed to himself, without realizing what he just said.

Samus turned around as if a spark of interest came on. She shifted her eyes towards Lowell. Did he just _agree_ with her? She brushed off that fact.

"Anyways, I want to do our species of life on Pichus," Samus hastily said.

"No. I want to do Jigglypuffs!" Marth reported.

"No… PICHUS," Samus demanded, a little bit louder than what was necessary.

"JIGGLYPUFFS!" Marth practically screamed.

"GET TO WORK!" Mrs. Pierce shouted, as they both cowered back and quietly argued with themselves.

* * *

Peach nervously walked around the library for a moment, for she had been a little scared of what was going on. She was a bit confused on what she should do, because she had no idea where her partner Roy was, and was desperately looking for him around the book section of the library. She entered the open, study area when she heard a voice from her right.

"Oi! Toadstool, over here."

She turned around a little bit, to see that Roy was practically seated near the library window a bit far to her right. A look of realization hit her, as she immediately started to walk to where her partner was to join him.

Rachel Livingston let her foot slip out in the open for a moment in Peach's path to Roy. Peach unknowingly stepped in front of Rachel's foot and tripped, spilling all the books and papers in her hand. She was on the floor, as she slowly got herself up in a kneeling position.

She heard the giggling of Rachel from behind her, and she felt pain swell up in her eyes. She hated the environment that she was in, and she certainty hated the MRL Fan Club. Oh, why did she have to end up with Roy Flores? Her vision was becoming a little bit blurry, but she tried her best to hold them in as she picked up her books and papers. Her tears were almost about to fall…

"Here, let me help," a warm, friendly voice said, as he passed her a couple of papers.

Her tears were gone. She looked up. Roy Flores reassuringly smiled at her.

She blushed at him for a moment, as she averted her eyes down to the ground. She couldn't believe nor understand why he was with her on the floor helping her. She had always believed that Roy and his friends were all perhaps stuck-up, rude, and maybe even think headed. Though, the more she thought about it, the more she realized that Marth was a womanizer, Link was a cold hearted bastard, and Roy was just… normal. Roy Flores appeared to be a really nice boy, compared to his friends.

"That was pretty bitchy of Livingston to do that to you, right?" He leaned over and whispered to her.

They felt a hot glare coming from Rachel's table. She froze in slight fear of what Rachel might be planning. Roy was with her for now though. She knew Rachel well enough to not even _dare_ to harm her in front of Roy, especially when Roy didn't appreciate bullying of any kind. For some reason though, she felt the slightest form of reassurance. It was as if there was a small candle inside the hearth of her body, flickering in warmness.

She slowly nodded her head at him. Roy smiled at her response, for it seemed that she was being kind to him. He picked up her papers, and passed them back to her.

He picked up a forbidden piece of artwork, as his attention was caught on what was drawn on paper. He observed it with a lot of attention, as his mouth slightly opened in astonishment.

Peach glanced up to see if Roy was going to pass her some more papers. Though, her eyes widened with shock, fear, and worry as she saw Roy observing one of her most precious pieces. This was bad. Nobody had known about what she was highly interested in. She hoped he wouldn't make fun of her…

"This…" He began to say, his expression somewhat cold and unfeeling.

She bit her lip, as if she knew that he was going to criticize her on her artwork.

"is really…"

She knew it. He was going to say that her pieces of art were horrible, and not want to work with her anymore. Though, why was she caring so much that he worked with her? She had just been with him for about half a minute, and she was feeling sad. Perhaps it was his warmth in his words…

"Beautiful!" He finished, as he looked up from the piece of paper.

Peach's eyes widened with surprise at what she said.

"Eh?" She said for the first time today.

Roy smiled at her, as he held the paper in front of her and turned the piece of paper on the other side. It revealed two women wearing an extravagant, crimson dress, fine with details and artwork. One of drawings of the women was facing forward at the viewer, and the other one had her back turned. It was the same person wearing the same dress.

"It's really good. I never knew that you were really into making your own fashion designs, Toadstool," Roy commented.

A deep flush of red tinted Peach's cheeks, as she quickly snatched the paper away from Roy. He opened his mouth in somewhat surprise at her actions.

"I-it's…. just a hobby of mine. I've been doing it since I was eight," Peach said slowly, as she avoided eye contact with him.

The red haired swordsman still smiled at her.

"Well, it's pretty darn good. You're really talented. I think you'll definitely make it big one day, if you keep that up," Roy said casually, as if it was the truth.

Peach looked up at him with awareness, as she couldn't believe what he just said.

"No… I'm really not… I don't think I could ever get a career in that sort of..." Peach said, as she searched around in her mind for the right word to use. "_thing_."

Roy frowned at her pessimistic behavior.

"What are you talking about? I'm serious. I think it's really good. I may not know that much about fashion, but I like what I see. Your designs are way better than the fashion I've seen in the States."

Peach's face only flushed even more with embarrassment.

"Uh… Thank you, Flores."

The red haired swordsman grinned with happiness.

"No problem. Anyways, we've got to decide what we want to do… So, come on now. Let's sit over by the table and discuss it," Roy said as he helped Peach get on her feet.

"Uh, yes," Peach agreed hesitantly, as she followed Roy.

Just when she made sure that no one was looking, she smiled to herself. Perhaps it was the first, warm, and true smile that Peach had in a long time. She felt that maybe… just maybe… her partner would be a really nice person to work with.

* * *

"So… What sort of species of life do you want to do?" The blond asked, peering up from her textbook.

The other blond across from her, fiddled with his fingers, not paying the slightest bit of interest or attention. He coldly shifted his eyes upwards.

"I don't care. Do whatever you like," Link said.

Zelda gritted her teeth, as she closed the book shut.

"Listen, Mrs. Pierce said that we have to work together. I'd really appreciate it if you and I could both agree on a subject in which we'll both enjoy working with. I do not know that much about the life species here in Nintendo City," Zelda finished, as she hoped her lab partner would maybe cope with her now.

Link's eyes shot up again at Zelda, as he raised a questioning eyebrow.

"Whoever said that we had to do a species of life IN Nintendo City?" He questioned.

"Eh?"

Link sighed heavily.

"Look at the HANDOUT, Harkinian!"

The Princess of Hyrule glanced down at her pink handout in front of her. There were no specific details for where the choice of the species of life should be located.

"Idiot," Link muttered to himself, a little too loudly.

Zelda felt the muscles tighten around her body, for she felt that she wouldn't be able to tolerate Link's behavior. She raised her hand, in hopes the Biology teacher would see her.

"Mrs. Pierce?" Zelda asked, as the Biology teacher reached the table.

"Yes, Harkinian?"

"Does our substance of life have to be from Nintendo City?" Zelda asked.

"No, Harkinian, it doesn't. I'm pretty knowledgeable of different species today and from a while ago. If you do present me with a sort of life in which I'm not familiar with, I'm pretty sure I'd be able to research it and make sure that what you wrote in your lab reports was correct. Heck, part of the reason why I assigned Wright with you was because you're both from the same place and same time period."

Zelda's eyes widened with shock.

"He's…. from the same time period as me?"

"Yeah. I'm sure he knew that as well, right Wright?" Mrs. Pierce asked as she turned to her unmotivated student.

"Of course. I knew that way before Harkinian did," Link replied, as he tilted his chair back and tried to relax. "It appears to me that Harkinian doesn't understand what goes on in this school that much…"

Mrs. Pierce raised her eyebrows, as she nodded.

"Alright, if you two have any more questions, I'll be around here."

The two students nodded, as Mrs. Pierce walked away.

"… So, what did you want to do?" Zelda questioned.

"I don't know. And I don't really care," Link replied, as he inspected his nails.

"Alright, fine. I shall decide. I wish to study about Cuccos. I know my best friend would probably be able to lend me a few eggs, if we were able to do that sort of life as our project," Zelda told him.

She paused for a few seconds, to see what his reaction would be. He didn't seem to hold any interest or any sort rejection on his face, for he was still inspecting his nails and had his chair tilted back.

"Whatever. I said that I didn't care."

"You do not care if we were to fail this project?" Zelda inquired, somewhat coldly at him.

"That would be impossible, you foolish girl. Why would we fail it? The only way we'd fail it would be if we were to not put any effort into it. Mind you, I'm fully aware of what I am and what MY abilities are. I know that I'll be able to pass this stupid, little project without even having to lift a finger," Link explained, as he looked up from his nails and smirked at her.

"Only people like you, can't do a single thing by yourself because you feel that you're a confused, silly little girl who doesn't even know what this school is. The Super Smash Brothers High School isn't what you think it is… It's more than just academics, Princess. It's something more. And I pity you for not knowing what more it is."

Zelda clenched her jaw.

From this moment on, she knew one thing. She would not get along with Link if he continued to be this sort of person.

* * *

"The nerve of that guy! Who does he THINK he is!? The three Goddesses themselves?! No! I decided that I should leave that whole rude incident in the hallways behind me, since I'd have to work with that boy! I don't understand, Samus! How can a boy like Wright be so… ARROGANT?!" Zelda ranted, as she and Samus were in the girls' bathroom.

She finished up washing her hands, as she strode over to wipe her hands with some paper towels. She forcefully threw away the papery, anger stricken all over her body and her blood heating against her skin. She faced Samus, who was brushing back some of her golden locks back in front of the mirror, as the huntress just shrugged.

"Hey, you may be working with Wright, but at least he's not THAT bad compared to Lowell. You can insult him all you want behind his back, but at least he doesn't have to KNOW how you feel about him. You know? Lowell knows that I hate him, and he hates me back," Samus explained.

"Are you saying that it's a good thing?"

"Yeah… Kind of? I don't know. I hate him," Samus ended abruptly once again, as she finished pushing back her bangs for a moment.

The Princess of Hyrule lifted an eyebrow at her.

"Yeah. But ugh! To THINK he'd perceive himself so highly above others! He acted as if I was idiot! I mean… Yes, it's true that I receive high marks in school, yet he acted as if I didn't know what I was doing here! I am _fully_ aware that I'm here to fulfill my late mother's wish, Samus! What in the Scared Realm did he mean by: 'The Super Smash Brothers High School isn't what I think it is'?!" Zelda asked.

Samus shrugged again, as she tried her best to part her hairline the best she could.

"Psh. I don't know. Wright is a very mysterious person, I'd say. And about what you said about him and being arrogant, Wright is _always_ like that. He's been like that ever since freshman year. At least, he's not openly arrogant about it, like Marth is. Not to mention, he seems to have more of an… uncontrollable anger. Marth is more normal compared to him. You know, there's something weird about him…" Samus trailed off, as she finally looked up from the mirror above the sink, and spun around.

She faced Zelda, with a smile on her face.

"Don't let it get to you, Z. You know that you're better than him," she said. She slung her arm around the Princess' shoulder.

"Besides, you're _sexier_ than him as well!" Samus whispered in her ear.

Zelda laughed, as she and Samus walked a bit forward.

"Hah! Oh stop, Samus! You can't really compare the beauty of the opposite gender to me!" Zelda said.

A smirk crossed the bounty huntress' face.

"Heh, whatever you say, girlfriend. I think it's possible to compare girls' looks to guys'! I know that you're definitely a million times better looking than that Lowell-jerk. Anyways, girl, we gotta get to lunch. I'm starving…. Besides, where's Peach?"

"Oh… She muttered something to me that she'd go up ahead to the cafeteria when I told her that we were stopping at the bathroom," Zelda explained, as she opened the bathroom door for Samus.

"Ladies first," Zelda reported, as she made a gesture to Samus.

"Oh no, miss! After YOU, I'm clearly the gentleman who is gender confused with restrooms!" Samus replied with a British accent.

The two blonds laughed at their silly behavior, and exited the girls' bathroom. Though, what they'd encounter next would be completely unexpected.

* * *

The two entered in the cafeteria, thinking that everything would be like a normal day, chattering and laughing. However, it wasn't until Zelda noticed to her left that there was a table with several sheets of paper on them, along with two fellow classmen seated behind the table. Normally, there wasn't a table that occupied that empty space to the entrance of the left side, unless there was an important event or something going on, such as a dance or perhaps a student event coming up.

"Hey, Aran! You plan to enter the Tournament, right?" said an anthropomorphic, male fox said.

"You bet cha, McCloud!" Samus replied with a grin on her face.

"Heh, don't think you'll win this time though! I've been practicing a lot, Aran!" Fox replied, as he put his feet up on the table and tilted his chair back.

"You shouldn't get too cocky, Fox. You and I still have that bet going on, dude," said another anthropomorphic. However, instead of a fox, this being was a bird.

"So?" Fox asked.

"You betta watch out then, because I plan to whoop your ass!" Falco said.

"Haha, you guys never stop that competition thing you've got going on, now do ya?" Samus asked.

"Hell no! You think I wanna lose to this birdy, Aran?" Fox asked, as Falco balled up his fists.

"Well, guess what, Fox? Get ready to B-R-I-N-G –I-T –O-N!!" Falco said.

Samus laughed merrily again.

"Okay, guys. I guess I'll see you at the welcoming party," Samus told them as she was ready to proceed to their usual, lunch table with Zelda. Though, the duo of the Starfox team said something before Samus could move an inch forward.

"Aran! You're supposed to take a form right now, if you still wish to compete this year, you know!" Falco shouted at her.

He waved the form up in the air, as the bounty huntress faced the Princess for a moment.

"Hold on, girl. I'll be back."

Samus quickly rushed over to where Falco was and snatched the paper out of his hands.

"I'll see you guys at the Tournament!" she called at them, as she waved good-bye.

She caught up with Zelda, for she was curious to know what Samus and those two other males were discussing about earlier.

"What is that?" She pointed her finger at the form that Samus was holding in her right hand.

"Oh, this?" Samus said, as she rose up the form in front of Zelda's face.

"Yeah, this is a form for the Tournament."

"What Tournament?" The Hylian Princess questioned naively.

"The Super Smash Brothers Tournament. It's a really famous event here in Nintendo City. It's sponsored by our school. Actually, the principal of our school hosts it and is the chief who organizes the event. He started it two years ago. He's the one that decides what goes on in the Tournament and arranges it for us. He also interviews anyone who's interested in the event to make sure that they're serious about competing and shit," Samus explained to her.

"What is the Tournament exactly about?"

"It's a fighting tournament," Samus explained once again, as Zelda raised her eyebrows in shock.

"It's to see who is the strongest out of Nintendo City. Of course, not only high scholars can compete in the event, practically anyone. It doesn't really matter where you're from, just as long as you have access to Nintendo City and you can put up a fight."

"Sounds a little bit interesting," Zelda commented. For she began to have a mental image in her head of super, strong men wrestling like sumo wrestlers do. "What kind of fight is it, exactly?"

Samus stopped in her tracks for a moment; thinking over the subject delicately.

"Just any kind of fight. You can use weapons, your hands, basically anything and everything. There are sometimes items that drop down in the arena for you to use. And it's counted that if you defeat a person with an object as a win. Though, you receive more points and fandom if you're able to use your abilities and skills as a fighter. I'd know that, since I know that there are a lot of gals and guys out there who support me as a fighter," Samus reported proudly.

"Hmmm… I see," Zelda said, as she frowned.

Samus faced her for a moment, as she smirked.

"You interested?"

"No, not really," Zelda replied. "Sounds really rough and kind of… stupid, now that I really think over it."

"What part of it is stupid?!" Samus interjected, a little bit offended that her friend replied to her in that way.

The Princess shrugged.

"What is the point of competing? You fight against people, and get fandom. I don't think that many people care who's the "strongest" here in the Super Smash Brothers School," the blue eyed princess commented hastily.

"So? Besides strength as physical strength, it also shows how emotionally strong you are! You'd be well-respected around everyone in Nintendo City if they know that you can endure the pain and have a reason to keep on fighting. And about what you said about the point of fighting? Our principal, the Master Hand, holds a really special prize, ya see. If you're able to win the Tournament against other people and himself, you'll get ANYTHING you want!"

Zelda raised another eyebrow.

"Is that so?"

"Heck yeah, that's so!" Samus replied. "Even if you don't win, you still get a ton of cash for trying and competing. It's a win-win situation. You go home with something, even if you don't win."

"So… What do you exactly want out of the event? What are you fighting for?" Zelda inquired immediately, now hooked with the idea of the Tournament.

"Me? Hah! I wanted yen. Lots and LOTS of yen. I mean, I may not have that much money right now, though I know that if I win, I'll definitely be able to go and be alright for a while, ya know?" Samus explained.

"I see," Zelda replied.

"Yeah, anyways, you should totally think of joining. It's really fun! Mainly because when you start out, you can either start out fighting in teams or by yourself. If you joined, you could fight with me!" The tomboyish girl exclaimed happily. "Then, we'd be able to teach that Lowell boy a lesson!"

"Lowell competes in the Tournament, as well?!" Zelda asked, surprised.

"Hell yeah! He, Flores, and Wright compete in it as well!"

"So, does that mean that the… MRL Fan Club are-…" Zelda began to ask, as she looked around to see if any of the MRL presidents were going to send her any glares.

"Oh, the MRL? No, of course not! They've never entered the Tournament. They're not the type to get down and dirty. Physically, that is. They're more of the type to sabotage someone when they are not looking, ya know? They also act as cheerleaders for them, rather than participants. Besides, it'd be their worst nightmare if they were to fight against Lowell, Flores, or Wright on the battlefield," Samus ended.

After Samus had said that, Zelda stopped dead in her tracks, for she could not believe what she was seeing at their lunch table. Samus, who was still facing Zelda, noticed this strange action of her, for the blond then cocked her head to the side.

"What's wrong?" The aggressive female asked, as Zelda pointed towards their table.

Samus' eyes shot towards where the Princess of Hyrule was pointing at, for she also felt a pang of surprise struck her. She could not believe what she was seeing as well. Her mouth dropped open in shock, as she felt her eyeballs bulge a bit out of her eyes.

The two blonds both expected one thing when they exited the girls' bathroom. It would be that that the Pink Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom would be alone by herself, because it'd be the most likely thing of her character, would it not?

However, the Princess was not alone today. She, instead, was talking and _smiling_ at the person sitting across from her. Though, it was a very weak smile, but nonetheless, it was as if a small ray of sunshine had been cast over her body, thus giving her a radiant personality.

The person sitting across from her was no other than Roy Flores. The bright redhead was sitting at where the trio of girls normally sat, as opposed to the normal, central table in the middle of the cafeteria. The two appeared to have a very good time, with the swordsman chatting lively to the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom, as she smiled and nodded every now and then.

The two also could feel a tremendous amount of hatred towards Peach, due to the MRL Fan Club and their beloved Roy discussing topics with the Princess. Though, it was perfectly obvious that they wouldn't dare to come an inch closer to the Mushroom Princess because of the presence of Roy. She was safe.

It had been only a matter of seconds, when Peach noticed her friends staring at her and the boy. She nervously shifted her eyes down at her lap, for she was worried about what they'd say about her with the Pheraen sitting and talking with her. Roy noticed the strange behavior of Peach. He turned head around, to see what Peach had saw.

Roy Flores looked at both Zelda and Samus, as they gawked at the handsome, pretty-boy named Flores.

He grinned at them.

"Hey!" he called at the other blonds, as he also gave a small wave at the two.

The two didn't say anything, for they couldn't believe that in a million years that Roy Flores would be talking to _them_, let alone sitting at their usual, lunch table.

"Come on, now! Seat yourselves! I don't bite!"

Zelda blinked for a moment, as Samus still had her mouth open.

"… Do I have to make you guys sit down, or are you really just that scared of me?" He asked.

The other Princess and the bounty huntress both snapped back into reality as they faced each other. Samus shrugged her shoulders and gave Zelda a "What the hell?" look. Zelda faced back at the two scholars at their lunch table. Flores didn't look half as a bad compared to Lowell or Wright.

They both sauntered over briskly and seated themselves between Peach, while Roy sat on the other side, alone.

"Hey," he said to both of them.

"Hey," Samus mumbled, as she pulled out her water bottle.

"Hello," Zelda said in a friendly voice.

The redhead grinned at them.

"So how are you guys?" He asked politely.

The two didn't say anything, for they didn't know how to respond to Flores' friendly tone of voice.

"I'm… alright," Zelda finished the sentence.

Roy nodded as he faced Samus.

"You?"

"I'm ugh," Samus told him.

"Why are you 'ugh'?" Roy asked.

"Because! I have to… work… with…" Samus began to say, but stopped for she didn't wish to insult Marth in front of his best friend.

"Marth?" Roy finished for her

Samus nodded, as Roy smirked.

"Heh, it's alright. I know that you really dislike him, Aran. I don't mind if you insult him in front of my face, because that's your personal impression of him," Roy explained, as he began to face Peach, but Samus said something to cut him from doing so.

"Why are you here?" She asked somewhat rudely.

Roy gave her a confused look.

"What do you plan to do to my dear Peach?" She questioned.

"… I'm working here with her. She and I were discussing on how we would be studying the different types of mushrooms in her kingdom. I take quite a fancy about learning of the mushrooms in the Mushroom Kingdom. It's really a fascinating subject," Roy said.

"That doesn't answer my question," Samus abruptly told him.

"Well, I don't know. I just… was having a sort of interest in talking things here with Toadstool," Roy said, as he looked at Peach for a moment. The Princess felt a bright, hot color go up to her cheeks, while Roy smiled. "She's a very interesting girl."

"Uh huh," Samus said, though her tone of voice didn't seem as if she was convinced with the swordsman's little "explanation".

"And I just kind of thought it'd be nice to… sit here for a day. You know? Just kind of get away from the group…"

"So, you're saying that you hate Lowell and Wright? You're not friends with them anymore?" Samus inspected.

"No! I'm not! I'm just saying that… well, I mean… Sometimes, a change of location is nice for me. Sometimes… it's just… too much to handle. Sometimes, I kind of wish to stay away from "that group", where everyone cares for you and watches every move, you know?" Roy explained.

"Hmmmm," Samus said, as she faced Zelda. Zelda gave her a look, which told her that the boy was harmless. "I guess I could let you stay here… Only to discuss about the Biology project, though!"

Samus began to take a swig of her water, as Roy raised an eyebrow.

"Erm… Alright? Though, I was kind of hoping not to discuss the Biology project with Toadstool. I was kind of interested in getting to know her..."

Samus was in the middle of drinking of water, until she spat the water all in front of Roy.

"Hey!" Roy said, as he began to wipe the water off his school uniform. "Ew! Gross!"

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT?!" Samus said, as Roy found Samus' face right in front of him, furious. She grabbed the collar of his school uniform shirt.

"W-W-What do I mean by what?"

"What the hell!? Do you REALLY think that I'd let you get THIS close to Peach!? Who knows what you're going to do to her which will corrupt her innocent, little brain! What do you plan to do with her, huh?! Do you plan to take her one day, and sell her to become a prostitute?! There's absolutely NO way I think that you'll be hanging out with her! It's already fishy that someone like YOU, part of the MRL, has come over here!" Samus reported; her voice rose with anger.

"Well, um… Aran, I never really had those sorts of… wrong and unjustified thoughts when I just wanted to get to know her better," Roy said nervously, as he felt the back of his head sweat drop. He held both of his hands up innocently.

"So!? You may not have them now, but you may have them later! There's NO way that I'll EVER allow you to get an INCH closer to Peach! She's my friend! I've known her for a YEAR now, and I wish to make sure that's happy! Do you have ANY idea how much time and effort I've put into her, just to make sure that she doesn't have a hard time here in the Super Smash Brothers High School?!"

"Samus…" A voice said, a bit nervously.

"To think that you, Roy _Flores_, part of the in-crowd, with your princely, dazzling like behavior would talk with MY Peach! This isn't a girls' comic book! You can't just waltz in here, and think that everyone will obey and worship you just because you're popular!"

"Samus…" The same voice said a little bit louder.

"You can't just walk in here and just blow away Peach's mind and think you've got a hold of her, and then just walk out innocently on her, breaking her poor heart, and-"

"SAMUS!" The voice practically screamed.

"WHAT?!" Samus roared back, as she faced where the voice was coming from.

She immediately regretted that, for she found herself facing Peach, with a sad look upon her face.

"Samus," she said finally in her normal tone of voice.

"Please don't accuse Roy of doing something like that… He's a really nice person… I know it's a bit too soon for me to say that, since it has been only forty-five minutes that I've been talking with him… But he really is! He's not… asking for that much. Honestly," she paused, as she looked at Roy from across the table. "I want to be friends with Flores. If he doesn't mind, that is. He's a really good boy… and… he doesn't seem to be the type to harm me."

The Pink Princess cautiously averted her eyes, for they were filled with some sort of sadness. Though, Samus didn't understand why… She knew better than to ruin a friend's happiness. The blond huntress faced her other friend, Zelda, to see what she's say. Zelda faced her with a look, saying that she should let Peach have what she want, with a nod.

Samus sighed.

"I have no choice, now do I?" She let go of Roy's collar, as she seated herself back down in her seat.

Roy exhaled deeply, for he had been holding his breath the whole time Samus was accusing him of what she was saying. He relaxed a bit, for then he smiled warmly for allowing him to stay.

"I don't mind getting to know you better and being friends with you, Toadstool," Roy reported.

Peach felt her face light up with radiance.

"Really?"

Roy nodded, and smiled with reassurance.

"Yes, Toadstool. I'm serious. So anyways, as Mrs. Pierce said, we should plan on getting together outside of school to research more and more about the Bio project," Roy explained.

"Yes, we should."

Peach smiled at him as the two proceeded to have a nice conversation, whereas Samus and Zelda gawked at the two for talking. It was clear to Samus and Zelda now about what would happen between their friend and the MRL boy. The friendship between Flores and Peach would be one of the most beautiful flowers ever blossomed in the history of the Super Smash Brothers High School.

* * *

"Oh… My… GAWD!" Marth said, as he felt himself collapse all over their lunch table.

Link shifted his eyes towards the Altean.

"What?" He interjected with his normal, cold tone.

"Linnkkkkkkk," Marth whined.

"What?!" He asked again.

"Roy isn't here," Marth replied, using a very child-like tone of voice.

Link rolled his eyes, annoyed.

"I _know_, Marth. It's perfectly obvious that he's over there with Toadstool," The Hero of Time reported, as he made a gesture towards where Roy was sitting.

Marth felt his eyes water up, like two year does when he doesn't get his favorite toy purchased from a supermarket.

"I want him back," he commanded, as he faced Link. "Do something about it."

"Ugh," Link said. "No. Marth, quit being a child here. You're fifteen years old, you can handle this. This is high school, not kindergarten."

Marth began to cry, as if two waterfalls of tears were coming right under both of his eyes.

Link rose from his seat, as he took his tray of food in his hand.

"Where are you going, Link?"

"I'm going to throw my food and talk to someone about something," Link said shortly.

He quickly speeded towards the trash can near where Roy's table was, before Marth could say anything to him. He then sauntered towards the table, behind Harkinian, Aran, and Toadstool. He cleared his throat loudly so that Roy would look up from Peach's baby-blue eyes.

"Oh, hello Link!" Roy said, as he smiled at his friend.

Link smirked back, though the smile only lasted a few seconds.

"Roy, how are you?"

"Good, and you?"

"Fine. Marth wants you back," Link told him.

Peach looked at Roy a little bewildered at what Link had just said.

"Erm… No, it's not what you think. I'm not gay, Toadstool. Marth is just somewhat clingy to me, since I've known him for most of my childhood," he told her, as he looked back up at Link. "Tell him I'll see him around during fifth period. Was there anything else you needed, Link?"

Link shook his head, as he placed his hands in the pockets of his school uniform pants.

"No, not really. I wanted to talk to Harkinian here about something," he said.

"Well, be my guest," he replied, as he made a gesture in front of him, saying that Link should just take a step forward to talk with Zelda.

"Tomorrow, I want to go and research about our life species after school," he said as if it was an order, rather than a request.

"Erm… Okay," Zelda said a bit hesitantly.

"I don't have soccer practice, since it's a Tuesday, but there I want to work some place where I won't be seen with you."

"… So you're saying outside of Nintendo City?"

Link nodded.

"I'd rather drink the slime of a thousand poisonous ChuChus than to see myself with such a low, confused girl with absolutely no confidence."

At this statement, Zelda was sure to feel Samus' fists balling up at him, as she knew her violent friend was ready to punch him. Zelda turned to Samus, and placed a hand over her arm, telling her to calm down and do nothing cruel towards her lab partner. Samus would have to let her over-protective behavior slip this time around.

"Alright. Fine. We'll do our research in Hyrule. I think I'll be able to ask my father if we can use his library to research upon the Cuccos," Zelda stated, following the same cool tone that he did with her. "I know my carriage driver, Koji, will be able to drive us there to my castle. I hope you won't get too carriage-sick for the long ride towards Hyrule Castle."

"I'm sure I won't, Princess. It's not a big deal. I'm stronger compared to most people. Tomorrow, as soon as school ends, at the entrance of our school. We'll meet there, and take off to do our project. Good-bye, Princess," Link icily said.

He turned his back at her and walked off back to his lunch table, without uttering another word. Zelda's body relaxed, for she felt there was a lot of tension going on between her and that mysterious boy named Link.

"Yeah, I apologize for Link's rude behavior. It takes a while for a guy like him to warm up to the people around him. Don't mind him, Harkinian; he's got a lot on his mind… He's had a-…" Roy began to explain, though Zelda wasn't listening.

Instead, Zelda wondered for the rest of the day what her meeting with Link would be like tomorrow afternoon. It would be a challenge, though she knew she'd get by it. Her relationship with Link Wright would be one of the most confusing and yet addicting sort of friendship. But this was only the beginning for her strange encounters with Link Wright.

* * *

**Yes, I know. The chapter ended short, because I'm lazy, stupid, and I'm too uncreative to do something about it. I apologize. I have major brain damage now that I've written out this chapter.**

**Please review and I'll love you for the rest of my life.**

**Love,**

**-BKP**


	14. A Father's Request

**A Father's Request**

"Aaaaarrrrgggghhh!! What should I do?!" Zelda questioned. She allowed her body to fully loosen up, as she sprawled her body all over the cafeteria table.

Exactly twenty four hours had passed since Link had "requested" to work with the Princess in private. Lunch was filled with normal, busy activities, such as kids screaming their lungs off and the usual MRL glaring at the fact that, Roy was, once again, sitting with the three lovely ladies. Samus shrugged, as she took another large gulp from her water bottle.

"I have no idea. Jerks are hard to deal with in the first place, especially if there's a specific prince by the name of…"

"Again, let me guess… Marth!" Roy chirped from his notebook.

This was the second day in which the redhead wished to be seated with the company of the females at lunch. The huntress was just beginning to feel the slightest feeling of annoyance at him, as she rolled her eyes.

"You know how much I hate him," she said bluntly.

Roy looked up at her with a lopsided twist on his mouth.

"Of course," he smirked. "I don't really blame you for hating him, because I can see where you're getting at. But you're so predictable when it comes to your hatred towards him. He's not that much of a bad guy at all. You just haven't gotten to see the real him."

"Yeah, Samus… Why is it that you hate Lowell?" Zelda asked, peering up from her chicken salad. Samus hesitated a moment before answering.

"I don't know… I just-"

"Hate him?" Roy finished off for her again. Samus said nothing, as she felt her cheeks glowing red.

"Well, I-"

"Sounds like you're not giving him that much of a chance," Roy cut off, as Samus felt herself wanting to argue with Flores. However, she bit her tongue, because she knew it would upset Peach. Roy hesitated for a moment, as he continued to stare blankly at the material in front of him.

"Bleck. I don't understand what Ms. Tran wants for this quiz on Russia," he said.

A surprising look struck all three blonds, as their mouths dropped.

"What?" he asked.

"You're Roy _Flores_, remember?" Samus told him. "What happened to that whole image of you being "bad-ass" smart, taking up fifty AP courses, getting all of those high rank scores on standardized testing material, taking the SFPs when you're only a sophomore, and you always studying your ass off whenever you get the chance?"

"Hey, I DO study my ass off, only to make sure that my father is proud of me," Roy reported. "Other than that… I don't take fifty AP courses, I don't get high scores on the JSAS, and I certainty don't study whenever I get the chance!"

"How many classes are you taking then?" Samus asked.

Roy paused, as he took a moment to give it a thought.

"Hmm… I'm taking AP World History, AP Economics… Erm, Honors Biology with you guys, of course, Honors Geometry, Honors Classical Literature, Honors Chemistry, and AP Statistics?"

Samus' face glowered at him for he had proven her point.

"Is that even legit? That sounds like a lot of hard, top-notch classes to me," she commented.

"But that's not a lot!"

"Does your father really wish that you'll do well in school?" Peach asked, pausing, for she still wasn't aware if her voice was being heard.

Roy heard her though. He turned his head at her, and smiled warmly.

"Yeah." His dark blue eyes looking fondly at her, as he didn't bother paying attention to anything else in the room.

"… I see," Peach replied, eyes shifting around a bit, as redness painted over her cheeks.

Roy just smiled even more. Samus faced Zelda, and raised a questioning eyebrow.

"I threw up yesterday," she commented randomly. It broke the moment, for the two were just staring at the huntress in a weird and disgusted way.

"I think I ate a chicken casserole that had been two weeks old and it made me throw up," she explained. Roy raised an eyebrow, while Peach slapped her forehead.

"Wow," Roy replied blandly, clearly not interested in that sort of topic.

"Yeaaah…" Peach added awkwardly.

"Yep!" Samus cheerily said, while she held up a two fingered peace sign.

"Uh huuuuhh," Roy's voice trailed off again, as his eyes shifted from one direction to the other.

He closed his book, and shut his eyes for a moment.

"Argh, this is getting stressful. I hate this," Roy told them. "I should eat something, but I don't know what."

"Ah! Flores, I have some… cookies that I made yesterday, if you don't mind," Peach told him, blushing.

"Ah, yeah?"

"Yes!"

She reached inside of the pocket of her uniform skirt, and pulled out a pink, bunny designed cloth-like sheet tied up. She wrapped it, revealing small, delicious looking chocolate chip cookies. She held them in front of Roy, bowing her head slightly.

"If you would…" She said, without looking at him.

Roy raised a questioning eyebrow at the Princess' formal behavior. He just smiled.

"Thank you," He picked a cookie and tossed it in his mouth. He chewed it for a bit, before swallowing. "It's good! I love chocolate chip cookies!"

He gave her a thumbs up sign, as Peach finally looked up at him.

"Really?!"

"Yeah!"

The two continued their private conversation, clearly engaged with what they were talking about to each other. A lonely silence filled one of the long ends of the table, as Zelda and Samus did not utter a single word to each other. And at this time, Zelda leaned over to Samus' side.

"Is it just me… Or do you feel left out right now?"

Samus nodded. "Yeah, I totally feel left out. It's like she doesn't even realize that we're here. It's as if… as if…"

"We're ghosts?" Zelda finished for her, as the other blond nodded her head once again.

"And she can't see us… It's like as if we're invisible, y'know?"

The other Princess nodded her head, for she felt that she had nothing to say. Samus slowly took a sip of her water bottle, before setting it back down on the lunch table.

"You know… I think I've only seen Peach smile once."

Peach mirthfully laughed at Roy's comment on what happened last year with Marth and his father arguing about grades. She clearly wasn't paying attention to her surroundings, for she only saw what she wanted.

"I think the only time I saw her smile was on the third week of school last year, and she kept trying to get rid of me. As if I was a stray dog, y'know? Anyways, she was being bullied again by the MRL Fan Club for no particular reason, and… I helped her."

By this time, Peach Toadstool was fully absorbed in a world where it was only Roy and her talking.

"She kept on asking me: 'Why are you doing this for me? Why are you always being so kind to me? I don't even know you…' I guess she wasn't used to my presence back then…"

"So, then I said to her: 'It's because I _want_ to be your friend.' As soon as I said that, she cried out of happiness, I guess. I couldn't tell at the time, but she kept on bawling her eyes out like a five year old. But anyways, I stayed with her. I stayed with her until she stopped crying, and finally smiled at me the way she's smiling at Flores," Samus explained finally.

Zelda gave her an understanding look, as she tried her best to comfort her. But even Princesses lack the right amount of sympathy when they wish to look perfect all the time.

"Samus…" she said, a little less heartless compared to most.

"It just doesn't feel right, ya know? I mean, I stayed with her for over a year, trying to make her open up, yet she didn't. Now, a guy just walks in, and solves a problem I spent so much time and effort doing… Part of me hates it to death… And part of me is just really envious. Another part of me is also just really sad, because I felt that I haven't really done that much for someone I cared and protected… And another part of me… feels really relieved and happy for her."

At this being said, Samus titled her head towards the floor, sadness fully wrapped around her body. To the Princess of Hyrule, it looked as if the strong bounty huntress was going to cry.

"Samus?" A new voice asked.

Samus looked to her side, thinking it would be Zelda. She was wrong. It was Peach who was talking to her.

"… Is something wrong? You looked really sad for a moment…"

"Ah, it's nothing, Peach. I've got it covered. I'm-"

"That's not good," she interrupted.

"Eh?"

"You're pretending. You're just acting like this to make me feel better, right?"

Roy, noticing a private conversation between the females approaching, stood up.

"Erm, I've got to go to the bathroom real quick, I'll be right back." He slipped away, unnoticed by the females.

Peach's face turned from being bright with radiance and happiness, to grim darkness with complete sadness and somewhat remorse.

"It's not good… To lie around a friend, to say that you're alright when you're not."

Samus shifted her eyes away from her, pretending as if it wasn't a big deal.

"It's really nothing, Peach… You clearly… have something with Flores, and it's not really any of my concern."

She hastily averted her eyes to the wall, hoping that Peach would just drop the subject.

The Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom only pulled her two eyebrows upwards.

"Eh? … That may be true… but, you're my best friend…"

At the sound of those words, Samus shot her head towards her. Her friend only, looked down at her hands.

"I'm really that much of a bad friend, right? You know… I really hate myself for not really telling you this, but… all of those times you protected me and spent time with me… I was really happy. I know I never showed it, but I was really happy. I should've smiled… I should've perhaps even laughed, but something always held me back from doing so…. That's why… Don't hold yourself account for anything! I am happy being friends with Flores… But we're only friends…"

She played around with both of her index fingers.

"We're never going to be anything more than that, Samus… I promise you that," she added, before looking down at her fingers again.

"Hey Peach! How's everything?" Roy asked, shortly intruding on their conversation.

She shifted her eyes away.

"Everything is fine, Flores."

Roy smiled at her.

"You know, if we're going to be friends, you don't have to call me by my surname. Using my first name is fine. I think I'd prefer it if all of you called me by my first name rather than my last," he commented.

The threesome of girls glanced up at Flores, questioning his idea.

"… Even Samus and I?" Zelda asked.

"Yeah, all three of you seem like really interesting people. I wouldn't mind getting to know you all," he reported.

Samus grinned, for she knew what Peach said was true.

"Alright, then, Roy!"

She snagged a chair on the opposite end of the table where the copper haired boy was sitting at. She slung her arm around his shoulder, as a guy does when being cool and casual to his guy friends.

"So, yo, Roy-Boy. Did ja see that tournament wrestling last night? It just like… oh my God. SO awesome! It so intense last night! Misaki and Toru were using heavily spiked GAUNTLETS! Isn't that so cool? Like, I mean… the blood and gore on screen! Though, I think it may be fake blood, but oh well," Samus started chattering, as Roy uneasily felt sick.

"And then… BAM! He BODYSLAMMED that dude! It was soooo cool!"

"Uhhh... Yeaaaah, Samus. I'm sure that's interesting," Roy said nervously, for he wasn't so fond of wrestling.

"What? You sound as if you're not interested! I thought you liked fights!"

"I do. Just skilled fights like in the Tournament. Sports as in fencing or archery, not something similar to sumo or wrestling."

Samus made a pouted face, as she crossed her arms.

"You're not fuuuuunnnn," she whined.

"I know. Marth says the exact same thing to me all the time. You two are really quite similar, do you know that?" Roy said with small smile.

Samus winced at the name once again, before she sighed. People were moving about, as they threw away their lunches, hinting at the changing of periods.

"Man, this sucks. Lunch is over now," Samus said, as she gathered up her backpack on the seat. "See ya around."

* * *

The bell finally dinged all around the school, signaling the time to leave. Zelda hesitated for a moment as she swore that she could feel the MRL Fan Club whispering about to each other, as children excitedly chat to each other. Yet, there was something chilling whenever Zelda thought about the MRL huddling to each other like that. It always gave the lovable Princess something that she couldn't shake off.

"Megan… When are we, like, getting ready to strike? I'm getting, like, soooo impatient!" Caitlin whined to her best friend. "You know… Link just look SOOOOO scrumptious today. I mean, his ass, his hair… his chest… everything about Link is sooo beautiful. I'd definitely steal him and rape him on the spot if I was given the chance."

The brunette just firmly bit her lip before she responded. Besides for Rachel and Caitlin, a few other MRL members were crowded around her, near her locker, as she leaned back.

"Shut up, Caitlin! I'm thinking! I can't figure out when we're going to strike… I hate this. I hate the fact that Marth- MY Marth has paired up with Samus. Well, of course, it's not what he, like, wanted. I mean, who would, like, want to work with that Samus bitch? I hate her… I hate her and her friends. I especially hate Peach! I despise that girl with a passion! She's so superficial when she tries to act all shy and shit, but I know what her _real_ intentions are! That little slut!" She enclosed her hands around her hand, as she felt a disturbed voice talk to her.

"_You know you want to end it for her, Megan… You know it… You know that you'll make it happen."_

That dark, rich voice was filling her brain once again. This had not been the first time, but she wanted it to stop more than ever. It was causing her pain. It was the one that caused her more pain than ever.

"Get OUT!" she said firmly to herself. "Get out! Get out! Get out!"

The fellow MRL members stared at her, along with a couple people in the hallways.

"Are you, like, alright?" A fan club member named Vanessa asked, as she placed a hand on Megan's shoulder.

Megan's mind snapped, as she felt something possess her for that second. She firmly grasped the freshman's hand as she lifted it off her shoulder.

"Don't. Touch. Me." She told her with a hard, cold glare. Anger was written all over her face without the slightest bit of sincerity in it. The young girl only whimpered as Megan let go of her hand, and stayed quiet for the rest of the conversation.

"Anyways, Caitlin. I don't know. I seriously don't fucking know, and it pisses me off that I don't know. We only have to wait and see. The problem is though; we can't do that much right now… We're too small to act," Megan reported, as she walked past a specific poster. An idea popped into her head as she backed herself up to get a better look of the poster. She read the words carefully before smiling delicately, as if she had come up with a master plan.

"What? What is it?" Rachel asked, as she stood sideways to Megan. She looked up at the poster. "… Don't tell me we're, like, entering the Tournament."

"No, of course not. But this… Marth. Roy. And Link. They're all known regionally, right?" Megan asked. Rachel thought over what she was saying, before answering her.

"Yes… But I don't, like, understand how that, like… fits."

"Don't you see? We could get-," Megan began, as she whispered a plan to Rachel's ear. She proceeded to do so with Caitlin as well, before both of the presidents looked at her with a questioning look. Unsure and unconfident.

"… But I want to act NOW!" Rachel emphasized, on the verge of turning angry.

Megan bit her bottom lip, before coming up with a plan to attack Peach. She smiled. The presidents weren't sure what she was thinking, but they did notice that horrible look on her face. Megan smirked devilishly once again at them, before she felt the voice smirk once at her. But now… that devilish smirk was imprinting her mind, becoming larger and larger… Taking over her.

* * *

'_It's any second now… any second…'_ Zelda thought to herself, as she anxiously watched the ticker move slowly.

'_3…2…1!'_

_**DING! DING! DING!!**_

She closed her eyes, as the students cheered in joy. School was out for the day. She sighed, as she gathered up her books. The students made their way out of the door, as Zelda slowly sauntered past. She waved good bye to Ms. Tran, the World Geo teacher, and found her heart beating faster than normal.

'_Calm down now… I can handle this. This will be fine. I've dealt with worse and more dangerous situations than this,'_ the Princess reminded to herself.

She was passing by a couple of freshmen on her way to her locker, who were laughing and chatting excitedly, until she came in view. They hushed for a moment, glared at her, and one of them balled up her fists. Clearly, they weren't happy at the fact that the Princess would be spending time with their beloved Hero.

'… _Oh Goddesses! Who am I kidding! Everyone hates me for being partnered up with Wright!'_ She bitterly said to herself.

She couldn't help, but dash to her locker. She quickly snatched all the books necessary for the project, before slamming her locker. The noise echoed through the hallways, as everyone stared at the Princess for her violent behavior. She meekly smiled at the fellow students, but they all slowly backed away from her. Zelda sighed at herself, as she slowly made her way outside of the school.

There was Link. Oh Goddesses. Link. All the way down the entrance steps of the high school, Link. He was standing right in the center of the commotions happening all around him, hand in his left pocket pants and glaring in a way the MRL Fan Club would consider to be: "cool". The sun was hitting his hay-colored hair _perfectly_.

Princess Zelda couldn't help, but gawk at Link's appearance. She had to admit, even though Link was a cold-hearted bastard, he was a really good-looking one. She shook that thought off though, for she knew that it wasn't something she should keep in mind when working with this jerk face. But he had such a pretty looking face… His eyes were a beautiful shade of blue, his hair was always perfect and seemed to shine. Even though he was a guy, and only the Goddesses knew that boys were all supposed to be disgusting and yucky. Slowly, she stepped down to where that heavenly looking boy. He was memorizing.

"Hey, Z!" a voice interrupted her thoughts.

A hand was placed over her shoulder, as the Princess looked over shoulder.

"Huh?"

"Z! Come on, now! Don't look all that surprised at me!" Samus said, frowning at her.

"Oh. Sorry, Samus," Zelda said briskly, before gazing back at Link. Samus just frowned even more at her.

"Sooo, girlie. Are you working with Link Wright after school today?"

"Yeah," Zelda replied, not interested in what Samus was saying.

"I have to work with Lowell tomorrow at the library after school. Man, it was such a pain. He just stalked me down in the hallways after sixth period, and demanded that he meet me in the Public Nintendo City Library to work with him at five o'clock. Isn't it stupid?"

"Yeah, he's nice looking," the Triforce Holder of Wisdom replied, as she realized that she wasn't paying attention to her friend. "Ah!" She placed a hand over her mouth, before feeling guilty about her actions.

"I'm sorry, Samus! I didn't mean to ignore what you were saying!" Zelda apologized, before bowing her head in respect. The other blonde crossed her arms over her chest, before sighing at her friend's behavior.

"It's cool, Zelda. I was just saying how much I hate that Lowell dude. He's just… such a prick."

Zelda raised an eyebrow.

"Don't you always say that?" She asked, confused with why Samus was repeating herself all over again.

"Well," she replied slowly. "I mean… I don't know. What do you want me to say about him? That he's a god and everyone in Super Smash Brothers High should all worship him?"

"I don't think he's that bad," Zelda commented. "Sure, he may be an ass here and then, but he kind of always seems to be acting in good faith. He sure didn't seem that way when he went to Homecoming with me."

Samus said nothing for a moment.

"Well, anyways, good luck on Wednesday. Hopefully, you and Lowell will sort out your differences for working together. As for me? I'm going to have to deal with another arrogant jerk who never gets off his high horse… I'll see you around, Samus."

Zelda quickly turned back to face Wright. An impatient look was written over his face, fine lines wrinkled in his brow. She could tell that the patience was wearing off quickly; she could swear it was as if a bomb was going to explode. She inhaled sharply, confidence slowly rebuilding in herself as she reminded that she could either fail this project with Wright or she could try her best to get the highest grade possible.

"That took you a while," Link rudely commented, as she finally reached him.

"Well, I apologize, but someone caught me when I was making my way here," she replied, a little concerned to see how Link was going to react to that news.

"It doesn't seem like it. If you didn't waste so much time talking to your _friend_," Link said, as he put a huge amount of stress on the last word. He was still glaring at her, a cynical look from high above her.

"…"

"Let's go," he said hastily, rolling his eyes at her.

"This way," she motioned her hand towards the carriage standing to the left of them. With all of their stuff collected and themselves ready, they were off back to Hyrule.

* * *

"It's been a pleasure spending time with you, Peach," the handsome swordsman replied to her.

Peach flushed her cheeks madly, as she nervously shifted her eyes around. For some reason, this felt so _good_. It was wonderful! She didn't know why, but even though she didn't want to believe it, she knew that Roy could just go up to her and compliment her and make her feel normal. There was something about him in which she felt very loose around him. She couldn't help, but notice the wonderful charm that Roy had.

"It's nothing, really," she replied slowly, before looking down at her feet and hoping that Roy wouldn't notice the small smile she had on her face.

"Hm? Peach? Are you smiling? Why are you looking down like that? Oh come on, I think you'd look really cute if you just looked up at me and smiled!"

"Uh… No, I'm not smiling, Roy," she replied, before she felt her cheeks growing hotter and hotter. Roy gave her a funny look.

"Humph. That doesn't seem like the case. I don't understand why you're hiding it, but whatever. And… Ah, crap! I've got to go now Peach! I'm going to be late for soccer practice!"

He gave a little, good-bye salute before grinning at her again. Peach's eyes followed up at Roy's blue ones, before she slowly smiled and gave a small wave. The corners of his mouth tugged upwards again as he waved good-bye and was out of her sight down the hallways. Peach sighed. Half of a dream-like daze from Roy and the other half out of disappointment that he was gone. She frowned. He was gone. There had always been some sort of feeling of protection that she got when she was around Flores. But now, she felt stripped of her personal armor and was left bare.

"Hello, Peach," a voice hissed behind her.

She turned around. The next thing she knew was that she felt a sharp, burning sensation on the left side of her cheek. She didn't know it, but there was a huge, crimson hand print on her fair, delicate skin. Her body gracefully slipped down to the floor, as she felt herself paralyzed with shock with what was happening. And when she looked up, she couldn't help, but notice the sinister eyes of the people in front of her. Her old friends.

"So, Peach… No, I shouldn't be calling you that. I'm not acquainted with you anymore. _Toadstool_. Enjoying yourself? Lavishing yourself in the comfort and beauty that Roy gives you? You have no right to be near him, you know. You may be a princess, but you're a disgrace for your country. Our precious Roy needs a person who has grace, beauty, and style. You had that once yourself, Toadstool, but now you're nothing. Don't you ever forget that. You may have been something when you were around us, but you're still trash." She emphasized the last word with an uncontrollable ooze of hatred for the girl. Megan Anderson scowled at the girl on floor of the hallways of Super Smash Brothers High.

"Caitlin. Rachel," Megan commanded. The president of the MRL nodded her head in affirmation, as the two proceeded to get their revenge.

Water soaked through Peach's entire body, as she felt herself choking on the water. She coughed, gagged, and sputtered all the water out of her mouth. She fell on her knees as she still coughed and spat all the water out. Her eyes brimmed with tears looked up at the club members. She saw the figures of Caitlin and Rachel holding two empty, blue buckets in their hands, smirking with delight at the misery of the Princess. Her heart was torn once again.

"I-," she was about to say.

"You should be happy. We just _cleansed_ you of your impurity of hanging out with Roy Flores. You should know that you shouldn't make another move on him. Of course, you should work with him... We can't afford to see Roy upset at the fact that he got a horrible grade in Biology just because of _you_. You can work with him. But you have to remember one very important thing, Peach. His world is different than yours. You still pathetic and pitiful in his eyes, it's the reason for why all the sympathy he gives is _fake_," Megan spat at her.

The members of the MRL grinned devilishly at the words spoken to Peach. Peach whimpered in fear, as she slowly closed her hand in a small fist on the dirty floors of the hallways. Slowly, she felt the sadness and grief well up in her eyes.

"Oh... Are you crying, Toadstool?" Megan asked with artificial pity in her voice. Peach didn't have to answer that question, because Megan Anderson could see the proof lying in front of her. Small trickles of salt water dribbled off the pale cheeks of Peach Toadstool. Megan smirked.

"You now know your place. You know that you and Roy never stand a chance as lovers. You think we're stupid? You think that you could trick all of us into believing that your Roy's little "friend"? No. We know what you were up to. You should know that I'll win Roy's heart," Rachel Livingston declared, her eyes filled with fury for the girl. "Just remember… You were something before when you were with us, but now you are nothing. You got that? NOTHING, Toadstool. You're stripped from your crown here in school and you're nothing. You don't have the attitude to make a great queen. You're a disgrace to every female on the planet."

Feeling the job was completely, the MRL was satisfied with what happened today. They all turned on their heels to leave Princess Peach crying in the cold. Water dripped from the Princess's face, as she felt herself shattered once again from the small confidence that she built up.

* * *

_'__Oh Goddesses… This is awkward,'_ Zelda thought to herself.

Her eyes wandered in front of her. Link was sitting on the opposite end of the carriage, with his eyes loaded in disdain for the blonde Princess. Zelda quickly shifted her eyes away for she felt that the Hero was glaring at her harder than normal. Thirty minutes had passed since they left school, and they were still wandering about in Hyrule Field, getting close to her castle. Goddesses, this was intimidating.

Feeling the need to lighten the situation, Zelda decided to say something, "… So… How are you, Wright?"

"…"

"… Do you enjoy studying Cuccos?"

"…"

"How do you come about when traveling to Nintendo City for school?"

"… I ride my horse, Epona," was his only reply. Other than that, Zelda declared to herself that her conversation with Link was officially dead.

The Hylian Princess decided it wouldn't be worth it to press on the matters of making a discussion with Link Wright. She felt her eyes roll with boredom, as she looked out the window. She rested her chin on her hand, as she decided to let about with her negativity showing.

"You're extremely talented at hiding your emotions," the voice of the Hero commented sarcastically.

"Well, can I help it?" Zelda replied, as she lifted her head from her hand. "You make it obvious that you dislike me. I'm sure that you feel that nobody's presence can please you, except for your own. You've probably never loved anyone else's existence, besides yours."

Link gritted his teeth once again. "I'd watch what I say, if I were you."

"Oh? Why? You can't really do anything to me, now can you? I'm the heir to ruler of this country. You lay a hand on me, and my father would be sure that you'd be executed," Zelda couldn't help, but flaunt in pride as she smirked at her intelligence. This was a game they were playing after all. A game of cat and mouse, where the Princess was a nimble, small mouse, and Link was a ferocious, big cat.

The hay hair-colored man raised his eyebrows in surprised. "Hmph. How splendid from your "oh-seemingly-so-innocent-perfectionist-princess"," Link commented in his sarcastic tone again.

"I may be a perfectionist, but I'm more mature than you. At least I know how to show respect for a person unlike you. You're Hylian, aren't you?"

"Incorrect," Link said, as he shook his head. "I'm Kokiri."

Zelda's jaw dropped in surprise. "How can that be? That's not possible… There's no way the Kokiri are supposed to have Sheikah earrings!"

"What?"

"You're not Kokiri!" The royal girl stated in disbelief. "The Kokiri aren't supposed to ever age… They remain short forever. Why would you be a Kokiri at your height?"

"SHUT UP!" He angrily snarled. "Shut up! I don't want to hear it! Shut up, Princess, because I don't want to hear your views about what makes a Kokiri!"

He panted heavily at his outburst, as Zelda blinked a few times. She noticed a scarlet color flushed on his cheeks, embarrassment shown in his features. He calmed himself once again, before slowly regaining his composure. For another moment, silence reentered the carriage.

He was the first to speak. "You're immature," he commented loudly, as he faced her in the eye.

"Excuse me?" Zelda asked, completely baffled to hear what he just said.

"You're immature," he repeated. "You say that you're more mature than I am. But truth is… you're still immature."

Zelda's eyes gave Link a questioning look. "How so? I haven't done anything childish all day. I haven't just shouted my ideas about what makes a Kokiri and what makes a Hylian like you did just a few seconds ago. I haven't behaved like a child."

Link frowned once again, for he was tempted to do a horrible action towards the Princess. But he restrained himself from doing so, he was her lab partner. He hastily shifted his eyes away from her, before going on about the topic.

"You've just acted like a child right now," Link muttered a little bit too loudly.

"As I said, how so? I haven't made an outburst of any sort, whined, complained, or done anything to you which is remotely childish," Zelda explained, a smile curving upwards on her lips. She felt superior against Link Wright. She didn't know why. She found herself delighted in seeing Link's anger being pressed from his physical appearance, yet him containing himself very hard.

"You're not mature. You're far from it," Link began to explain. He finally took this opportunity to look at her in the eye once again.

"You say you're mature. But you're immature for saying that. Hylians always make the mistake of thinking too highly of themselves. I've seen this in you just now with your arrogance. When you say that you're mature, you're being immature. A mature, young Hylian would never say that he's more mature than anyone else. Boasting about what your abilities are, your beliefs, and your "maturity" is a very childish action. Instead, mature Hylians would just act as if everyone is equal. Superiority is a very immature thing. Whether or not you like it, we're both equal, Princess. Just because you wear a fancy, golden headdress on your head doesn't mean that you're more Hyrulean than I am. We're the same."

At the end of his sentence, Link smirked as if he knew what he was talking about. Zelda stared at him in awe for what he just said. It was as if he was able to smack hardcore reality right across her face. It was as if he had shown her the truth, and proved to her that she was not all perfect as she tried to be. Zelda fiercely bit her bottom lip, before finally finding something to say.

"How can you say that yourself? You're a hypocrite," she coldly said. "You say that I'm arrogant. But aren't you arrogant yourself? You always strut around the school with your high-class friends and think as if you own the place."

"Do I ever say that I'm arrogant and say that I'm better than you?" Link questioned with a lot of attitude.

"No, but you certainly imply it by the way you speak to others," Zelda commented.

"Implying something and saying the direct thing are two completely different things. A lot of living beings just like to believe that they are the same thing," Link rebutted. As if they were dueling with words, Link smirked as if he was getting the upper hand. However, Zelda just smiled. She wouldn't lose her balance of words in this fencing duel between Link and her.

"But did I ever say directly that I'm arrogant? I've just implied it," Zelda finally said, before she smiled in content. She had won.

Link only looked at her with his mouth slightly hanging in amazement. He was surprised with how well she was able to recover herself in this little battle. Even if it was only words, words were weapons. Words were just a more powerful form of swords, spears, and knives. He knew one thing right then and now though. With her talent, she could possibly become one of the greatest smashers of his time. By the string of fate, he would make sure that she wouldn't get in his way.

* * *

They had said absolutely nothing for the rest of the trip. The silence had come back between them, as if it was a haunting, dreadful ghost in the carriage. By the time they finally arrived to Zelda's castle, it already had been an hour since school was let out. As the carriage came to complete, full stop, the future ruler of Hyrule got out as quickly as possible.

"Welcome back, Princess!" The loyal servants of the Royal Castle greeted her. Zelda forced a smile on her face, and gave them an acknowledged nod. She turned towards Link, as her appearance drastically changed from neutral to cold.

"This way," she said, as she made a motion with her fingers.

She went past the huge front door of the castle, as Link trailed a bit behind her, as a puppy does when following its master. Zelda admitted that there was some kind of nervous fear when she led Link around in the hall, but she knew her duty. They wandered down past the hallways towards the Great Hall, when the Princess thought she heard something clash.

"Did you hear that?" Zelda asked in a normal, decent tone.

Link raised an eyebrow at her. "What?"

"That," she said again. Whatever the sound was, she realized it was coming from the Great Hall.

"It's over here," she explained, as she pressed her ear on the door of the hall.

"_I don't care what you say. I still refuse to sign this treaty with you, Ganondorf!" _

"_Easy now, King Harkinian. I can negotiate some more with my henchwomen to make sure that my Gerudo thieves never come across your land again. That is, if you sign this document…" A dark, rich voice replied.  
_

"_I refuse! I already said no. No means no. Why would you want me to pay three billion rupees for that silly, little thing? Hyrule can handle itself well with the structure of our government! And if you don't mind, I'd request that you leave now, Lord Dragmire."_

She heard the loud footsteps of a heavy weight man come towards the door, as she quickly stepped away. The door was seized open by a man. A man whom Link and Zelda would never forget. From the moment Princess Zelda of Hyrule laid her eyes on her, she was certain of one thing. He was evil. She only looked into the black eyes of the Gerudo, and knew there was some kind of malice in them. His red hair was different compared to her fathers, which was a very dim red. His hair had a color of fire in which it was flaming with ashes and shadow. His whole body was filled with some sort of supercilious aura, as if he wished to show disdain to every Hylian being all across the world.

Princess Zelda had seen Gerudos before, but most of them had a beautiful shade of healthy bronze to their skin. But this man seemed to have a very sickly, dark color of bronze where it made him look despicable. He wore black armor and carried a large, black sword in its sheath. The large man faced her, a smirk of interest and some what of innuendo.

"So, is this your daughter, Harkinian?" The Gerudo King asked, as he faced her father.

"Yes. Zelda is the only child my wife gave me," her father said, as he appeared shortly behind Ganondorf Dragmire.

Zelda did not break her gaze at Ganondorf.

"How old is she?"

"She'll be sixteen next February," her father replied, a little hesitant to say anything else.

"Hmm… Interesting. I have failed to introduce myself, now have I, Princess? My apologies. I am the King of the Gerudos, Ganondorf Dragmire," the tall man said.

"An introduction is not needed," Zelda began to say, as she swore that she saw a muscle in Ganondorf's right arm flinch. "My father has told me all about you, so… I know who you are."

She was scared. She rushed the end of her sentence, because she saw the heavy look in his eyes, telling her that he was ready to do something horrible to her at any minute. The Gerudo looked at her with some more disdain, before smirking in some sort of sick pleasure.

"Heh. Who's your little friend?" He asked, as his eyes darted towards Link.

Link. She had forgotten all about him. She spun around to find the young Hylian Hero to be glaring heavily at the man. His eyes were more piercing than ever, as he was staring at the Gerudo with some sort of extreme hatred for Lord Ganondorf.

"Haven't we met before?" the Gerudo sneered at him.

"Maybe once or twice," was Link's reply. The Princess's eyes widen, as she could not believe it. How could a mere Hylian commoner meet a man with such great power like Ganondorf?

"Hmmm… Are you from Kokiri Forest?"

"… Yes," Link hesitantly answered through his teeth, before clenching his teeth even more.

"Hah. I think I remember who you are. You're friends with that green haired girl. What was her name? That follower of the Great Deku Tree. She was such a pathetically weak, young Kokiri. Do you still worship that unintelligent Deku Tree with his nonsense words? It doesn't matter. I'll see you around," Lord Ganondorf said, before flicking the end of his dark cape. He eyed both the Princess and the Hero with an insane, dark interest, before leaving the hallway.

As soon as he was out of sight, the Princess felt herself loosen up a bit more. The cool interaction between Ganondorf, Link, and her was one of the most dreadful situations she had ever been in. She took this opportunity to smile gently at her father, proud of him for rejecting the horrible man's offer. However, she still noticed that Link was tense from the conversation with Ganondorf. He was staring in the direction of which Ganondorf had left, and did not even blink.

"… Wright, are you feeling okay?" Zelda asked, as she titled her head to one side. Even though she loathed this man to death, she would still try to be nice to him.

"…"

"Zelda, who is this young man?" Her father asked.

"Oh, him," she replied, as she tried to hide her verbal disdain for Wright. "This is Link Wright. He goes to my school, and he's the one I'm working with for this Biology project."

"Ah! So, you're Link!" her father said, with some sort of light in his eyes. The male Hylian finally turned around and nodded at the king.

"Yes, I am."

"So you're the one Zelda talks about all the time!"

"What?" Zelda and Link asked at the same time.

"I've been overhearing her conversations with Impa, you see. My daughter seems to take quite a fancy in you!" Her father replied, as he laughed with his belly sticking out.

"Father! I do not fancy Wright like that!" Zelda exclaimed, as Link said nothing. "And since when do you overhear my private conversations with Impa?! You have no right to do that!"

"But you never tell me how you are doing in school! I figured that I'd just listen in every once in a while and-"

"Father!!" Zelda protested, as she furrowed her brow at him. Her father sighed heavily, before calming down. Link raised his eyebrows in amusement at the interaction between the king and his daughter.

"Alright alright. I know," her father said.

"We have to get to work," Link abruptly told her, as Zelda nodded.

"Yes, we do…" She replied, before looking away. The blonde man took this time to brush away some strands of hair, as the king noticed the familiar triangular mark on his left hand. The Triforce mark was branded on his left hand. The King of Hyrule slightly gasped at the mark, for he knew that this was when it would be time for his daughter to grow.

"The library is this way," the young woman said, as she made another hand motion down the hallway. Link just nodded his head, as he began to follow the Princess, but the King pulled her aside for a moment.

"Zelda, you should keep Link close to you," he hissed into her right ear, as Link proceeded towards the direction of the library. Her mind froze up when she heard her father's request. She gave her father a strange look, as if she was telling him that he had gone senile.

"What? Father, why?" She questioned immediately.

"… He bears some connection to you. Let me just say that," the King Harkinian declared, as Zelda stared at him in disbelief. She knew that she was safe with this conversation, since Link had gone up ahead and was now admiring some sort of tapestry on the walls of the hallway.

"Father!" She hissed lowly, as she was sure to show the amount of disdain for Wright in her face. "I refuse to work with that Hylian! Do you know that he prances around as if he's one of the Goddesses at school? Can I really afford to work with a man like that? No, Father, I cannot!"

Despite the fact that Zelda was firm like her mother, her father had a quick temper. Redheads do have a short temper, and King Harkinian's red hair seemed to flame brighter in anger as he spoke to his daughter.

"Zelda!" He hissed a little loudly than her. "You will work with this man! How can I expect you to become a ruler if you don't live with life? Do you think I wish to sit in a room with my ignorant councilors and hear them discuss medley topics ranging from what the castle shall serve for dinner to my affairs with Termina? No. Of course not. So learn to grown a spine and deal with life. You may a princess, Zelda, but you still have a lot to learn. If you continue to be this childish, maybe I should rethink on who should succeed me in the throne."

The Princess of Hyrule gaped at his words, for she did not expect that her father, soft-hearted and usually understanding, to be this controlling and firm like her. Her father still frowned with her in disappointment, as he turned his head away from her.

"Your mother would expect the better of you. She would think that you'd be this mature to learn how to deal with situations like this. But by the looks of it, you shall not mature and you shall not become a true, noble Hylian with this sort of stubborn attitude. Work with him. Now. I command that you do so," he said.

Zelda scorned at the young Hylian who claimed to be Kokiri. She did not understand. She did not understand one bit. She loathed this man. And yet, her father was telling her to work with him. The stubbornness of Princess Zelda was a very childish flaw of hers, but soon she'd learn to deal with it.

* * *

It was quiet. There was some sort of unique tension hulking around the room between Link and Zelda. Besides them, nobody else was in the library. There was a feeling of anger that hovered in the air, and the feeling of speech wishing to come out of Zelda's throat. She could feel herself shaking a little bit, as she watched Link's life-strained eyes turn the next page of a book. He looked at her.

"Write this down," he reported.

Zelda slowly, yet eagerly picked up her pen.

"The Cuccos are an extremely dangerous breed, only if they aren't treated right. Cuccos are known to have an excellent relationship with Hylians, partically those who are farmers, and have an appetite for grain and grass. Cuccos should be noted that they wish to live in peace, and if they do not, their anger will lash out at any intruder. Despite the fact that the Cuccos do not enjoy violence, they are considered to be hypocrites because they fight back with violence as well," Link read from the book, as he felt his eyes rolling upwards. He faced Zelda, as he noticed the Princess busily scribbling the notes down.

"They… fight… back… with… violence… as… well," Zelda said out loud, as she jotted the notes down. Link felt the need to roll his eyes once again at the Princess.

"You could always abbreviate, you know. It's just _notes_. It's not like we're handing it in to Mrs. Pierce," Link dryly said.

"Ah! That could work!" Zelda replied. She felt jittery. Not only that, she felt strongly tense. Even though she didn't like Link, she still felt the need to be nice towards him. It wouldn't hurt, but she still felt uncomfortable around the Hero. It was as if he was ready to criticize her at any moment.

"… Are you done yet?" Link asked impatiently.

"No, not yet," Zelda replied, as she continued to take notes.

Link sighed, the aggravation was clear in the way the forceful air escaped from his mouth.

"Whatever," he said finally. He rolled his eyes, as he forcefully placed his elbow on the open book and closed his eyes.

Right at that moment, Zelda wished to ask: "Am I doing anything wrong?", but she lacked the courage to do so. She felt her left leg twitching in a prolonged fear of what was to happen next.

He opened his eyes and began to speak. "I don't like this," he told her, as if he was reporting a fact. Zelda ignored him.

"What is with that look?" He asked disdainfully.

"Nothing," Zelda lied quickly.

He gave a skeptical look.

"If you have something to say, then just spit it out. I want to hear what you want to say to me," Link snapped angrily.

"You're such a prick," the Princess blurted out. Link's eyebrows reached halfway upwards from his forehead.

"Is that so?" He asked with a sudden intense curiosity.

"Yes!" Zelda replied, not holding anything back with her words. She frowned at the young man, as he mirrored her look on his face.

"Well, if you say so... I guess that makes you one as well," he said coolly, as Zelda's mind snapped.

"What do you mean by that?! How could _I_, the Princess of Hyrule, be that sort of person who saunters around with such high respect for himself?"

"As you said before. It's _implied_, Princess. It's not spoken directly," Link smirked once again. Invincibility was crowned over male Hylian's body, as he felt himself glowing in some sort of radiance, before saying more. "Also, you've proven to yourself that you're physically and emotionally incapable of handling yourself."

"You confuse me, Wright."

"I've noticed that your friend, Aran, has signed up for the Super Smash Brothers Tournament like she always does. She always tests her abilities. Despite the fact that she is a female, I admit, she has far superior skills in her combat compared to most males I've seen. I admit that I have a certain amount of high respect for her for her fighting techniques. Only if she always didn't think with her emotions too much," Link commented sourly. Zelda's left side of her face twitched, as she heard Link speak about Samus like that.

"But, she is still has an incredible amount of emotional strength to bring herself to together to fight. Unlike you. You're so pathetic, anemic, and weak. You're like all Hylian women." With this said, he gave her another triumphant smirk, as if he was provoking her to retort back in some sort of childish manner.

"... So do you think that most women like me are weak?" Zelda inquired.

"Pretty much. Only Aran is highly capable because she's more tomboyish than most girls I've seen. Other girls, like you, should just be playing with their dolls, beauty, and hair all day as they remain frail, helpless, and a damsel in distress, as I'd say. Hylian women have absolutely no will to become something more than what they currently are. This is why I hate women like you so much, Princess," Link said finally. He smiled wily again. It was as if he had won something between Zelda and himself. That strange overconfidence that he had, as she found herself wanting to strangle that hateful Hylian named Link.

Zelda bit her lip, and tried to not let her anger take over her. She wouldn't be like Samus. No. She would not be like Samus at all. She wouldn't let her emotions take over her body. As she gripped the pen in her hand, she vowed to herself that she would enter the Super Smash Brothers Tournament. She would make Link feel sorry for what he said. She would show him her inner strength. She promised to herself and to her late mother, she would show all of Hyrule who Princess Zelda truly was.

* * *

_A/N: Yes, I am still alive. For people who care, you may have seen me hovering around the Zelda section. I've been spitting out a few oneshots here and there. But do not worry!! I am not leaving the Super Smash Brothers section any time soon. I will continue to work on Gardenia. And for those who care to know... this fan fic WILL still be a Melee fan fic. I have no possession of Super Smash Brother Brawl, despite the fact that I have a copy of a Wii, but still. Yes, you may make fun of me for not having a copy of Super Smash Brothers Brawl. Blame my parents. They believe that video games and violence corrupt my mind. I also am not fond of the idea of including Brawl character just yet._

_I've also been having the most INTENSE and glorious sevensome with Marth, Link, Roy, Ike, Royal Kenya, crystalicios, and I. xD I HOPE YOU'RE LAUGHING OUT LOUD, RK!! YOU BETTER BE!! :D xD_

_Anyways, please do me a favor and say what your opinions. I'm sure that this chapter does slightly suck. I'm trying to show a lot of flaws in characters to make them less perfect. I know it's been a while since I last updated. So please not only review, but also wait patiently for the next chapter. I am trying to outline all of my chapters for this fan fic. It's a time consuming process._

_-BKP_


	15. Pride

**Pride**

"Glad you showed up." Samus grinned at the somewhat brave girl. The girl sheepishly smiled back at the bounty huntress as she shyly shifted her eyes away.

"It was an impulsive decision, but I've finally decided to show that cold-hearted bastard that I am worth something. I may not physically strong, but Goddesses know that I can fight if I want to," Zelda declared.

Samus raised her eyebrows at the girl, impressed with her determination. The girl with green eyes just smiled, acknowledging Zelda's hasty decision. Zelda Harkinian shut her eyes for a moment as she tried to remember what had happened two weeks ago. It was something impulsive of her to do, but she couldn't help remembering how her situation went with Impa.

* * *

"_I vow to join this competition, Impa! I shall fight, and I shall win against that dreadful man named Link Wright," she declared, as she held out the competition form. She waved it in the air for a moment before thrusting it down on the table near Impa._

_Impa blinked a few times, baffled at the Princess's words. The nursemaid was only sitting down near the table, a knife in her hand that she used to peel the skin off a golden apple. It took a while for the nursemaid to comprehend the material flung at her. She set the knife down on a plate as she stood up._

"_Are you sure, Zelda? I honestly think you shouldn't let this young, Hylian get to. You shouldn't be holding grudges, Zelda. It's very childish and silly for you to do so," Impa slowly said, as she placed a peeling of the apple on the plate near her._

"_Impa! How can I forgive a young man like that? He's unforgivable! And Hylian? A Hylian? He told me himself that he was a Kokiri!" Zelda retorted back hotly._

"_But, still… Zelda, how do you even exactly plan to fight these smashers? From what I see, this competition seems to not only test a person's physical strength, but their emotional, spiritual, and mental strength as well. Without a doubt, Zelda, you do have emotional, spiritual, and mental strength."_

"_Yes, which is why I was planning on using my magic to assist me with these battles," Zelda said confidently with a smile._

"_Though, it does say that you must have some attacks involving physical strength as well. You don't have that much physical strength," Impa stated. _

_"I was planning to use that transformation technique you taught me," Zelda explained, as Impa almost dropped the apple in her left hand._

"_Zelda! That technique is only supposed to be used when you're in a life-threatening situation! It's for you to ESCAPE, Zelda. It's not for you to fight! I only created the technique so that you could distract and confuse an attacker rather than fight him!" Impa shouted._

"_So? Impa, you are a master of the Sheikah Arts, right? You could always teach me how to fight like a Sheikah!" Zelda said with a hopeful look in her eyes._

"… _But, Zelda… I'm supposed to use them only to protect you. You can't master these techniques in a simple amount of time, you need serious practice. If I were to teach it to you, you'd be aching all over. Nothing in life comes for free, Zelda," Impa lectured._

"_Well, on the form, they did say that it would take a while to recruit the new smashers. That buys me time to get ready for the competition!" Zelda stated happily._

"… _You are still missing the point. It's torture for anyone to go through several workouts and it causes a lot of mental strength as well. Zelda, I cannot teach you these techniques. And I will not sign the form."_

"_Why not?" Zelda demanded in a more harsh tone. "Father is too busy to sign this form for me. It says that if I can't get a parent, I must have a guardian over twenty-one years old to sign it."_

"_It'd just be too much for you. You'd end up failing school if you dedicated your life to this tournament," Impa said, as she began slicing the apple into fourths._

_Zelda gave Impa a cold, hard glare. She was furious. She wanted to pay back Link. She was determined to have him realize how noble and great she was. She vowed to make him bow before her. She would show him her true strength as a young individual. And yet, how could Impa not agree with her? Impa had been her nursemaid for years. If anything, Impa understood her the best._

"_Here," Impa said, as she carefully passed a slice of an apple to her._

"_No," she refused, as she pushed the apple slice away._

"… _Why not? You said you were hungry for apples before. So, I prepared some for you," Impa said._

"_I refuse to eat. I won't eat until you agree to teach me the Sheikah Arts and sign the form," Zelda said in a stubborn way._

"_Zelda!" The grey haired woman hissed at her. "You can not just refuse to do something this rash! Eating is one of the basic Hylian needs!"_

"_I said I won't do it! You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make the horse drink it!" The Princess said in a very bratty way._

"_Zelda! You're acting like a child. Stop this foolishness now!" Impa commanded. "It's been over ten years since you've acted this way! You're almost sixteen! You should be ashamed of yourself, Zelda! Your mother would be frowning upon you to see how much of a brat you are acting like now!" _

"_I only wish to show Wright how strong I am! I will prove him wrong!! Impa, I can't let you get in the way of this! I thought you'd be able to understand!"_

"_I do understand, Zelda! But you're taking a childish and reckless route here! If you wish to act mature about this, you would just let it go and focus what's more important. Your education is what is most important right now," the nursemaid explained calmly._

"_I won't do as you say. I have made up my mind, Impa, and I will do as I please!" With that said, the Triforce Holder of Wisdom stomped out of her chambers._

_Three days had passed. The Princess did not take a single bite of any sort of food. She relied solely on herself. Not even the temptation of her favorite foods had her give in. Instead, she just ignored each and every servant that offered her something delicious to eat. It wasn't until the King Harkinian himself was fed up with the Princess's stubborn behavior._

"_Impa," the King said on the third day, as he cornered the nursemaid._

"_Yes, your Majesty?" She responded._

"_You have to get Zelda to eat. I cannot have Zelda become so weak and frail. She's a growing woman, and not to mention… My only heir to the throne. She is the gift the Goddesses and my wife gave to me. Why are you doing this again?" King Harkinian asked sternly._

"_I feel that Zelda is just being too childish with this decision. If she were to join this tournament, she would face so many challenges that she would just collapse and fall into a depression over it. I feel that she is too weak and too childish to handle something as extreme and mature as this competition," Impa reasoned._

"_So? If she is weak, she'll learn to grow. I admit, I was hesitant when she requested to do this sort of activity… But think of it this way, Impa. If she shatters herself, she will learn to pick herself up again. She would become stronger. Wiser. And more beautiful. And that, Impa, is what I want in an heir. She would learn to not only over come physical battles, but emotional ones as well. She would please her late mother and I," King Harkinian commented._

"… _But, I just feel it's still too soon for her," Impa said softly as she fondly remembered the gentle, playful Zelda back in the old days.._

"_It's better to be early than late, Impa. I know this. We can't shelter her for too long, or she'll never grow. But if Impa, if you do this… you have to make sure that you will not come to her heed when she is in danger. For the price of what she wants, you will not assist her in sort of battle. She must learn to do it herself. Even if she's screaming and begging you for help, you must not aid her. She will only have to learn to depend on herself. Starting from today, you will be teaching Zelda the Sheikah Arts and you will sign the form," King Harkinian stated._

_And Impa did. Zelda was overjoyed from hearing the news. In fact, she was so overjoyed; she almost fainted from her lack of food. However, before teaching her anything, Impa instructed her to eat properly and get the correct amount of sleep. Before she knew it, Zelda had not learned a singled lesson from Impa, because by that time… Orientation for the Super Smash Brothers Tournament had already rolled in._

* * *

Zelda bit her lip hard at the memories of Impa. Of course, the Princess still felt furious at the fact that she had not learned anything so far. But she still could see that Impa wished for her to be well before learning anything. She also regretted for making Impa feel stressed out and worried over her, but at least she got what she wanted. She had entered the Tournament. The Hylian faced Samus again before smiling at her.

"You excited about this?" Samus asked, as she gave Zelda another grin.

"Positive," Zelda replied.

"Good. I mean, it's gonna be tough, but I think you'll do fine."

Zelda smiled once again as she let her eyes scan around the room. The lobby room outside of the Super Smash Brothers Mansion was an enormous room, different creatures from all over Nintendo City were gathered for this day. And she was still surprised to see how many people there were.

There were some funny looking people such as a weird, short man with a huge, black mustache wearing a red cap and white gloves. Another strange person was someone she recognized from school, the anthropomorphic, male fox named Fox McCloud. He was wearing an interesting amount of gear with him, carrying a pistol and had some sort of head device. And now did Zelda think it through, everyone _did_ look pretty challenging with their equipment and the amount of experience they had.

"… _Whatever,"_ she thought. She brushed off the fact as if it was nothing.

Though, she knew inside she was shaking all over. Her heart didn't stop pounding in fear of what was going to happen. She felt so inferior to everyone. Even though she was wearing her traditional, Hylian dress and her crown at this orientation, she still felt as if she was a mouse in this room. Small, defenseless, and weak. Samus also seemed to be somewhat intimidating, and she only was wearing a red tank top and red pants. However, the muscles on the huntress' arms were bigger than hers.

"Oh Goddesses," she muttered to herself.

"Hn? Oh, Peach! Peach! Over here!" Samus said brightly, as she waved to the girl in the crowds. Pretty soon, Zelda's mind focused to where Samus was looking at. As she thought, Peach Toadstool was standing near the entrance of the lobby room, anxiously looking around in an elaborate, pink dress.

"Peach! Come over here!" Samus shouted once again. In less than a second, Peach noticed the duo and slowly sauntered over them.

"Hey, girlie! I didn't know you were entering the Tournament as well!" Samus said ecstatically.

Peach slowly nodded. "Yeah… It was a last minute decision… Daisy wanted me to do it…" Peach's voice trailed off.

"Heh, Daisy, eh? Well, gosh, she does certainly know what's best for ya! I swear, both of you are going to have _so _much fun out of this Tournament, it's _that _fun," Samus said again with a bright smile.

"That's right," Zelda began to say, regaining confidence. "The main point of this Tournament is to have fun. It's not to show off skills, but to compete and have fun, yeah?"

"Yeah! That's right, Zellie! You got it!" Samus replied, before slapping her back. The Princess of Hyrule smiled once again, before she decided to observe her surroundings again. It wasn't long until she recognized her all too familiar hero. Her eyes began to widen with shock.

"Oh no," she let those words escape from her mouth.

"Eh?" Samus and Peach said at the same time, shifting their attention to the Princess.

"Hide me," Zelda said, as she crouched down to the floor and covered her head with her arms.

"…Why?" Peach merely asked.

"Wright," Zelda replied, as she took a peek at the Hero along with his two troublesome friends.

"What's the big deal though? He's gonna know you're competing soon, I don't understand why you want to "surprise" him or something. Zelda, do you have a thing for him or something?" Samus asked.

"I do _not _have a thing for Wright! If I did, I wouldn't be hiding myself, now would I? I'd be all over him like that lecherous Caitlin Russell of the MRL Fan Club! And I wouldn't even been entering this Tournament!" The Princess said, flushing madly. The bounty huntress and the pink Princess both stared at Zelda for her amazing temper.

Zelda took a deep breath before explaining more: "I want to let him know that I'm not weak. I want to make him feel as speechless as I did when he said all of those nasty things to me."

"… Girl, I think you're totally in love," Samus reported silently to herself.

"Then how do you explain what you do with Lowell? You seem to take quite a fancy in him as well," Zelda inquired sharply.

"That's different!" Samus exclaimed fiercely. "Anyway, at least Wright has some dignity. And at least he doesn't go on rambling about how I'm such a horrible person behind my back, unlike Lowell."

* * *

"Samus Aran is such a horrible person, Link!" Marth whined at the opposite end of the Super Smash Brothers Mansion Lobby Hall.

Link rolled his eyes. "How so, Marth?"

"She said she was going to research Pichus with me at the Nintendo City Public Library on Friday, but she didn't show up! She stood me up!" Marth wailed.

"... Marth, you told me the other day that you guys were supposed to research together tomorrow afternoon. She didn't set you up. She said she had to make a schedule change at the last minute because of a dentist appointment," Link said.

"I did? I mean… _she_ did?" The royal Altean inquired. Link tried his best to not roll his eyes again at the Prince.

"Yes, Marth. You said that."

"So then, how did this all-"

"You probably forgot," Link reported. Marth took this moment to think _very_ hard about this before realizing that the green-clad hero was right.

"… You're right! Now I remember! Lords, how could have I forgotten?" Marth asked himself.

"I don't know, maybe it's because you've been too tied up with yourself?" The Hero coldly inquired.

"Hey hey hey, guys, cool down," Roy said. "It's another year at the Tournament. No fighting till the actual fighting begins."

Marth smiled. "You're right, Roy. I'm so excited for this year! I got my white armor all polished again! I can't wait to fight! Harkinian will be all over me once she sees me dressed all handsome and dreamy!"

"You mean that horrid outfit you wear at every beginning match of the Tournament? And that outfit makes you look as if you're going to the disco?" Link asked.

"Yes, that one!" Marth happily exclaimed. "Disco Marth is back on the battlefield!"

Link gaped in horror of the idea of Marth on the battlefield in his shiny white and gold armor. Prince Marth looked absolutely flamboyant in that bright colored armor. Much to Link's distaste, he wished that Marth wouldn't wear such loud and gaudy pieces of clothing. The world was sure to end very soon as Marth would probably dance to "Staying Alive" by the Bee Gees with colored, lights flashing all over the battlefield stage on the first day of the Tournament.

"Don't you dare dance to the Bee Gees," Link warned. "Or I'll make sure you'll die a very painful death…"

"Why nooooooooooooottt?" Marth whined in an infantile manner.

"Because you'd look ridiculous," Link reasoned. Roy tried his best to refrain his laughter between his two friends.

"You mean ridiculously good looking, right?" Marth questioned hopefully.

"No, I mean ridiculous in general. And ridiculous in general means scaring off Princess Harkinian."

"Jeez. Link, why don't you think it'll work? Gosh, don't you ever want to impress a girl or something? I don't get you, Link. Why is it that you never want any hot action from any of the babes of our school, y'know?" Marth asked.

"It's because I'm currently not interested in just making out with a hot girl, Marth," Link dryly replied.

"Anyway, guys. Forget this whole crap about girls. It looks like orientation is about to begin," Roy commented.

His face lit up as he saw the doors to the auditorium begun to swing open. The smashers eagerly entered the auditorium as they all seated themselves. Zelda anxiously tapped her foot, worrying over the whole part about the interviews. Samus Aran had told her all about the interviews after reviewing the forms. The Princess was sitting the edge of her seat, unwilling to relax until everything at the mansion was done and over with. Pretty soon, the chattering between the smashers simmered down as soon as they saw the lights dim in the auditorium and the large figure floating on stage.

Zelda gawked. The figure was a large, floating _hand_. Well, not exactly a human hand, but it was a moving, white, gloved _hand_. Her eyes widen in shock. What in Hyrule was this? How could this be physically possible?

"That's the Master Hand. He's also the director of the Tournament and the principal of the school," Samus whispered. "He's been around here for a while. It's rumored that he created Nintendo City along with his twin brother, Crazy Hand."

The Master Hand cleared his throat. "Welcome," the hand pronounced through the air. Zelda was still gawking. The floating hand didn't have a mouth. Or perhaps it didn't _look_ like it had a mouth, but surely it could produce some kind of voice. She still didn't understand what was happening.

"Welcome again, everyone. For those of you who do not know me, I am the Master Hand. I am the founder and president of the Super Smash Brothers Tournament. The Super Smash Brothers Tournament was created five years ago. After a year of success, we decided to open the first, public high school in Nintendo City, the Super Smash Brothers High School. Our main goal of this Tournament is to determine the strongest fighter of Nintendo City and reward them by granting what he or she wishes for. Any wish will be possible," the Master Hand paused for a moment. Even though the hand did not have any visible eyes, it seemed to face directly at Zelda and Peach, piercing them with his gaze. Zelda froze in confusion. What in Hyrule was going on? Wish… What was her wish anyway? Her wish was just to prove Link that she was just as good as he was in this Tournament. But that wish would easily be granted. What was her true wish to fight in this Tournament?

The hand continued to speak. "Each smasher has a reason why he or she fights. We created this Tournament to have the inner flower in each smasher blossom. People hold many different types of flowers in them. Which is why we always welcome back old the smashers from past years. The flowers must completely blossom by the end of year of fighting."

"_Flowers? What is this hand talking about?!"_ Zelda wondered. This wasn't making any sense. Or at least, the Princess felt as if it wasn't making any sense. She faced Samus, hoping to see that the bounty hunter would just be as confused as she was. However, her friend just nodded her head in response as if she knew everything the Master Hand was talking about!

"… We all hope to meet you soon. Old smashers! Stand up, please!" The Master Hand commanded, as most of the old smashers stood from where they were sitting.

"Ah!" Zelda said in surprise as she saw Samus rise from her seat.

"Please head towards the front of the stage where Crazy Hand shall assist you later. New smashers! Please head towards the exit and wait patiently as we all interview you," the Master Hand instructed, as another white hand similar to the Master Hand floated on stage. However, this hand made in very odd, jerky movements. No wonder why they called him "Crazy Hand"…

"See ya!" Samus said. The tall blond was just about to head for the stage until Zelda grabbed her arm.

"What is going on? Why are you going to the front of the stage? Why are you _leaving_ me?" Zelda questioned anxiously, as Samus shrugged.

"I don't know. I guess I don't need to be interviewed. I think I'm already guaranteed to be in the Tournament since I fought last year. Anyway, Z, I gotta go. You take care, okay? I hope you get in."

"… Okay. Fine, I got it. I'll see you around, Samus."

"Right! Bye!" Samus said, leaving for the stage.

"So… Peach," Zelda said, as she faced the other Princess. "Shall we go to the exit together?"

The pink Princess just nodded her head in agreement as she stood up.

"Hmmmm, I really wonder how this whole interview process is going to go… What do you think about it, Peach?" Zelda asked curiously, heading towards the exit of the auditorium with the other Princess. Peach only shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't know. They'll probably review our applications or something," Peach whispered softly.

"Yes, I suppose," Zelda said, finally exiting the auditorium.

"Zelda Harkinian!" A voice called.

"Yes?" The Princess answered. She faced upwards to see a young woman dressed in all white call her name.

"This way," the woman said, using the clipboard she was holding to direct the future ruler of Hyrule.

"Alright," Zelda began to say, "I'll catch up with you later, Peach."

"Mmm," Peach nodded.

The Triforce Holder smiled in return as she began to follow the woman in white clad. She followed her down a purple and blue hallway, mindlessly observing the surroundings. After a long while walking down the hall, Zelda felt nervous. She had never been interviewed before, and let alone… would she be allowed to fight in the Tournament? She fiddled around with the idea in her head. She could become stronger. She could maybe defeat Link and show that useless bum how much of a fighter she was. And she could perhaps maybe have her wish granted… But still, what was her wish?

"In here," the woman finally said.

"Eh?"

"In here… You're going to be interviewed right here, Miss-," the woman flipped back to her clipboard to see her name, "Harkinian! So please take a seat."

"Uh, right. Okay," Zelda stammered.

She looked in seeing a white room with a table and three chairs in the room. A man wearing black was already preoccupying one of the chairs, as she picked the seat opposite to the man. Goddesses! She felt as if she was in an asylum with this sort of environment! She clutched the skirt of dress.

"So, Miss Harkinian… How were you informed of the Super Smash Brothers Tournament?" The man in black asked, as he flipped through a pile of papers. Zelda assumed that it was her application profile.

"My friend Samus told me all about it!" Zelda rapidly replied. Oh Goddesses no. She was talking way too fast. She felt that her words were shooting out of her mouth left and right, and this was the _last_ thing she needed!

"And so why are you interested in this sort of Tournament? It says here that you're a princess of a land called Hyrule," the man stated.

"… Erm… Well, I guess it's because I want to become stronger for my country! I mean… I feel horrible at the fact that I am ruler, yet I have no idea how to protect Hyrule in any way. I… I admit that I may not be able to do much, but I feel that if I can perhaps learn what it is like to put your life on the line… I may be able to help my country during my future reign," the future Queen of Hyrule slowly assured.

"_Hmmm… That's part of the reason. But the main reason I'm here is because of that no good Link! Stupid ass. Argh! I loathe that man so much! Who does he think he is! Stereotyping Hylian women like that! I swear, I'll beat him to the pulp if I ever get to battle him!"_ Zelda thought, as she clutched the side of her skirt more.

"… Miss Harkinian? Is something wrong?" The woman inquired, noticing the determined look on the Princess' face.

"What!?" Zelda asked, startled. Regaining her consciousness, she replied, "Oh, no… Nothing is wrong. I was just thinking about my father… He's slightly ill, that's all."

She flashed them a charming a grin, hoping they'd drop the subject. The man in black only tugged the side of his mouth into a half smile.

"Hmmm," he said, reviewing the application form again. "What are your strengths in your attacks?"

"... Eh?" Zelda asked. She wasn't expecting an answer like that.

"Would you like me to repeat that again? What are your strengths in your attacks?"

"… My magic, I suppose… I-… I can perform powerful attacks using my magic," Zelda replied nervously. The truth was that she was depending a lot on Impa to teach her transformation attack as Sheik. The muscles tensed in Zelda's hands.

"Are there any specialty move sets that you have? For example, specific, powerful magic attacks?"

"Erm, well… I have three. One of them is Din's Fire that I learned when I was seven. The other is Nayru's Love which my nursemaid taught me when I was twelve… And the final one I know of is Farore's Wind that I learned last year," Zelda replied.

"Anything else?" The man asked with an eyebrow quirked.

"… Uh, a transformation technique?"

"Really?!" The woman asked with a strange amount of interest.

"… Y-yeah… Uh, my nursemaid was going to teach me more moves later," Zelda said hesitantly.

"_Shit. Maybe I shouldn't have said that… If I want them to accept me in this Tournament, they probably shouldn't know that I'm still learning techniques! Goddesses, why am I always so honest?!"_ She panicked.

"Hmmm… Interesting," the man said thoughtfully, as he scribbled down something on his clipboard. He frowned, as he flipped through some papers on the clipboard and finally looked up. "How much do you weigh?"

Zelda's eyes widened with shock. What sort of question was that? Why were they interested in how much she weighed?

"Erm… From the last time I checked, I weigh forty-three kilograms."

"Hmm... That's pretty light weight, don't you think so, Bob?" The woman in white commented to the man in the black suit. She flipped through some more papers on her clipboard and clicked her tongue.

"Yes, I suppose so, Arissa. However, the Master Hand did say he needed a balance of weighted people for this year's Tournament. That was his goal," Bob commented, as he directed his eyes towards a terrified Zelda. "Alright, Miss Zelda. Your interview process is done for today. Arissa will lead you out to the photography room in which a head shot of you is required for your application. In two weeks, we'll send a you a notification letter. It'll tell you whether or not you've been selected for a final selection battle between some of the past smashers. More details will be revealed later. We hope you have a nice day, and we thank you for expressing interest in participating in the Super Smash Brothers Tournament."

Zelda abruptly stood up from her seat as she was still in shock to see how quickly this whole interview went. She bowed her head in respect towards Mr. Bob and slowly followed Arissa out of the door. It would only be a matter of time until Zelda would be notified if she was in the Tournament or not. For now, the Princess would only hope to figure out what her true wish was out of the Tournament.

* * *

Five forty-five. There was no mistake. She was fifteen minutes late. That's what Prince Marth Lowell of Altea concluded to himself. The Prince frowned and glanced up from his watch, as he rolled his eyes from the library table he had reserved for the two of them. He impatiently tapped his pen against his binder, glancing around to see if that troublesome girl was around. He still couldn't believe it. Why him? Why did he agree to meet up with Samus Aran, the most ignorant girl in all of the planet, at Nintendo City's Public Library? Was this fate? He quickly brushed off that fact as he still kept a watchful eye out for the huntress.

There she was. She grudgingly entered the library research room, hastily looking up to see him. He waved a hand at her, motioning her to come on over.

"Lords. What the hell? You're late," he commented rudely.

"Yeah, Pretty Boy? Well, if your boss was working you overtime, you'd be late too. Then again, what should I expect? You're a _prince_," she said hatefully. "You don't have to work your ass for money or any shit."

Marth slightly rose from his chair. "Hey, I _do_ have to work hard nonetheless. You think I always want to sit through a five hour lesson learning how to pick up a wine glass using the least amount of fingers? Hell no. I'd watch what you'd say if I were you. Unless you want to take this out on the battlefield."

"What?"

"Yeah, you heard me. A fight," Marth replied heatedly, as he crossed his arms.

"... So you want to brawl like uncivilized people?" Samus questioned, as she mirrored Marth's action as well.

"What?! What the hell made you get that idea? I never said that!" He exclaimed, surprised to hear what was coming out of Samus' mouth.

"Then I would say you should be the one who watches what you say. I think you mean "duel". There's a difference between a "fight" and "duel", you know," she explained. "I thought _you _would be aware of the differences, considering you're from the past and all."

Marth blinked a few times. "What's the difference?"

"Well, clearly... A duel is a willing match which involves skill, tactics, and it between two people. Duels start with both people willing to test their skills to see who's better. It has more of a "let's see who's the most skilled person here" tone to it. Fights are more cheap and more of a surprise. They are evoked by emotion. They just start by the first person hitting. Fights do involve skill, but there are some cheap moves here and there. Like, if you have a one on ten fight. A person can cheat his or her way out by fighting, but it's all fair since most of the time that person relies on his or her skills to fight."

The future ruler of Altea raised an eyebrow. "Isn't a one to ten fight the same thing as ganging up?"

"No," Samus replied. "Ganging up is just using pure violence and a one to ten fight involves skill, y'know? Just like I said. One person fighting ten people. That requires skill. Ganging up on one person is tactic less, ruthless, and despicable."

"Hmph. You seem to have a lot of pride for an ex-motorcyclist gang girl," he commented acidly. However, he regretted saying that because he could obviously see a softer side to that troublesome girl now.

"Ganging up is stupid. It's disgusting. You think I'd want to be part of that? Hell no. My old mentor always said this: 'If you want to be a delinquent in society, do it with pride. You can defy authority and go your own way. But don't do cheap, disgusting things or you'll be scum.' That's why I don't do shit like drugs, alcohol, or stealing crap. Not anymore," the bounty huntress said.

"You really think you have pride? You're just a commoner. A person like me, a prince, has a mountain's worth of pride compared to you," Marth stated, as he smirked. Samus faced the boy.

"Oh? Why do you think that?"

"Well, obviously because I'm a royal. Royals are the top people and are well respected. Pride comes naturally with a royal's life, and we can easily crush your so-called 'pride' that you have. We are the ones that govern the country."

Samus narrowed her eyes at the arrogant Prince.

"Huh. You clearly don't have the true definition of "pride". From what I see, your pride is all fake. You just got of that "pride" due to the fact you've been pampered all of your life, _Prince _Marth Lowell. Pride is something developed on your own. I live my life by principals, rules, and morals. You don't. You're already reckless enough to go out and make out with a girl like Megan Anderson," Samus retorted.

"Ew, no. You'd think I'd fall for a girl like that? No. That girl puts on way too much make up that is necessary. She's obviously trying so hard to get a guy's attention, and it's not worth it," he reasoned, as his anger was cooling off.

"Yeah, right! You're the one who is constantly eying a girl's breasts all the time!" she replied angrily. "Admit it! You think nothing more of women besides the fact that they are sex toys. You like girls who put tons of make up on their faces, clearly having no ambition in life to be something more."

"I really dislike girls who put so much superficiality in their appearance, Aran. You think I date sluts like those? No! It just doesn't show the real side of them. Or, if it is the real side... it's fake because they like presenting themselves as fake," Marth contributed. He took this opportunity to finally face Samus. He didn't face Samus in that glaring way, but finally out of respect. Her emerald orbs met his sapphire ones, and there was finally an understanding between the two.

"Yeah, honesty will always show out no matter what," Samus concluded, looking away from his eyes. "That's why I guess I like fighting in the Super Smash Brothers Tournament."

"Yeah? Even with those showy moves you pull, Aran?"

Samus glared at Marth before continuing. "Yeah. You can see why a fighter fights just by the look in his or her eyes. You can tell what it wants. Whether or not it wants to fight for personal reasons or for fame. You can tell. The honesty shows through fighting. You get what I'm saying? You can tell by the way a smasher moves if he wants to fight with skill and tactics or just show off. But unlike _you_, I fight for a reason and without a flashy counter attack," Samus commented, as the Prince's anger rose slightly.

"_My_ counter attack is flashy? Speak for yourself, Aran. That charge shot of yours is so flashy that it blinds my eyes! But you're right about the Super Smash Brothers Tournament not taken that seriously. It comes to true skill. Which, by the way, _I_ clearly have and _you_ don't. I mean, there's always going to be a certain way and style of how well a smasher fights and yet nobody recognizes it. Take Fox for an example. He just does some random kicks in the air and yells a lot. That's just recklessly fighting. He obviously fights to show off a little bit. But, take someone like... Luigi. Sure, he looks like a bit of coward, he it's kind of obvious that he plans out his moves and determines stuff before actually fighting. That's why he's always so hesitant when it comes to battling a person," Marth explained.

"Hmph. Say what you want about _your_ true skill which involves you drooling like dog all over a hot, Ford model. Luigi surely does want to make sure he does well in the Tournament. Skill and tactics are seriously underrated these days. I'm starting to think that this whole Tournament thing is just a show for people. Nobody gives credit for the amount of effort, plotting, and time used in a true battle or fight. They all just like the action," Samus said, as she tilted her head to the side.

"Yes, and-"

"You two!" A voice called.

"Huh?" The two both responded.

"You TWO!" A middle aged woman wearing a nasty color of brown hustled over and stood in front of them.

"... Uh... hi?" Samus said. The middle aged woman glared through her horn-rimmed glasses.

"_What_ are you guys still doing here? It's five minutes past six o'clock! The library is _closed _now. You two better go home!" The librarian said furiously.

The two smashers gaped at the old lady's words for a moment before collecting themselves.

"Ah! Sorry! I sincerely apologize for staying here, Madam. Erm, we weren't keeping track of the time," Marth explained, as he nervously brushed his bangs back. Samus also bowed her head in apology.

"We're really sorry to have troubled you like this. We'll be out of the library soon, okay, Ms.?" Samus quickly gathered her things, as she nodded her head at the librarian.

"Your parents must be worried sick! Go home! I have to lock up this library without you two in here! Get out!" The old lady shooed them out, as the two smashers nervously exited out of the research room.

"Well, that lady was certainly cranky," Marth commented, as he stepped outside of the library.

"Yeah, you're telling me. Did you see the way she was looking at us? She acted as we were causing a racket in the library. Jesus," Samus said, aggravated. She adjusted her fall coat, as she faced Marth. Their eyes no longer had hatred in them for one another. Instead, there was more tenderness and respect for each other than they was before.

"So," she began to say, "I guess I'll see you tomorrow, Lowell."

He nodded his head. "See you tomorrow, Aran."

With that said, the two smashers went their separate ways for the day. Tomorrow would be another day with no mistakes in it yet.

* * *

"And so then I said: 'Better make it a double, or it'll overflow!'" Samus said, as the Princess of Hyrule burst into fit of giggles.

Already, tomorrow was today. The trio of blonds were heading towards homeroom early in the morning, not caring what was going on with the world. Samus was enthusiastically telling her story to Zelda with Peach trailing along on the details. The two of them were all wrapped up in Samus' little story.

"Oh my Goddesses! Samus, that's SO wrong! How did they react to that?" The Princess of Hyrule asked eagerly.

"They said-"

Samus' words were cut off by a brush of someone's shoulder. She looked up to see who bumped into her. Marth Lowell. The two stared at each for quite a while, not knowing how to react to this situation. Marth was with his friends as she was with hers. They still said nothing until Samus finally came to her senses.

"Watch it, Lowell!" She snapped.

"You watch it, Aran! You were the one spacing out and not looking where you were going!"

"Well, maybe you should be more careful yourself, Lowell! I was perfectly aware of my surroundings!" She said, as she crossed her arms.

"Why should I look around to see your ugly face?" He leered at her as she glared back.

"What was that!?" Samus snarled.

"You heard me!" Marth replied.

"Fuck you, you dickhead!" Samus screamed, giving him the middle finger.

"Bitch!" Marth yelled.

"Asshole!" Samus shouted, as she balled up her right fist and waved it at him. "Get lost, loser!"

"I'm lost!" Marth replied angrily, as he started to head down the opposite end of the hallway.

"Fine then, go!" She snapped, narrowing her eyes at the Prince.

"I'm gone, Aran!" Marth informed, as he faced back at her.

"Go!" Samus said forcefully, making another motion towards the end of the hallway.

"But I am gone!" He replied, throwing his hands up in the air like a gangster.

"Go again, Lowell!" Samus commanded, pointing her index finger down the hallway.

"I am gone again!" The Prince made an arm motion with both of his arms.

"Go then!" She repeated.

"But I am gone again!" Marth argued.

He bit his lip and turned his back on her. He finally started to walk away as the bounty huntress did the same. Roy, Link, Zelda, Peach, and everyone in the hallways stared at the two's ridiculous behavior. The two were both marching in opposite directions and both seem to be very high strung. Roy made a motion towards Marth at Link, telling him to follow Marth and Zelda and Peach did the same for Samus. The pair of two followers were following their leader, and not caring about the other side.

_'It's better this way. It doesn't matter if people know we agree on stupid shit,'_ Samus thought to herself. '_Besides, it didn't matter in the first place. He's just an arrogant prick. Not to mention, he's the president of my class while I'm-'_

_'Just an ex-motorcyclist of a female gang and an average girl in my grade. We live in two different worlds. We don't have that much in common anyway. What would she know of living a life as a prince?'_ Marth asked himself.

_'And what would he know about living a life as a middle-class person? He wouldn't understand a single thing. In fact, he wouldn't even survive ten seconds of working on his own,'_ Samus told herself.

_'Though, I admit... I've never been able to talk to a person like that I did with Aran. Okay, maybe once.'_

_'That one time at the Nintendo City's Transportation Center...'_

_'But only once. Either way, why do I feel so guilty about treating her like that? It doesn't matter. I have my own life to live,'_ Marth concluded.

_'I can't let that person get in my way,'_ both of them thought at the same time. _'My life is different compared to that person. Someday... That person will finally understand what it's like to live my life and respect me!'_

Roy stopped following Marth of all sudden. There was something he had yet to do...

"... Roy? What's wrong?" Link questioned, as Marth turned around to face his best friend.

"Dude, what's up?" Marth poked the side of his friend to see how he'd react.

"... I'm sorry, Marth. I just remembered something I have to do!" The redhead spun around and dashed towards the direction of Samus Aran and her company. Both Marth and Link gazed at each other in shock about Roy's abrupt leaving.

"Where is he headed to?" The Altean Prince inquired to the Hero. The Hylian shrugged.

"If I had an idea, I would've followed him. Sadly, I don't, Marth."

The redhead continued to dash towards Samus and her friends until he finally caught up.

"Peach! Wait!"

"Huh?" The pink Princess turned around and faced the redhead. He panted heavily for a while to catch his breath.

"I... I-uh. I wanted to ask you something."

The Princess nervously faced Samus and Zelda for a brief moment. "... Yes?" She wasn't aware of any important subjects that Roy needed to talk to her about this morning.

The redhead's blue eyes finally looked into Peach's. With a dashing smile, he said with confidence:

"Would you like to go out on a date with me?"

"… WHAT DID YOU SAY, YOU TWERP!?" Samus screeched at the swordsman.

Roy winced. He unplugged his fingers from his ears from Samus' screeching. "I was asking Peach if she wanted to go out on a date with me. Jeez. It's not like I'm asking _you_ out, Samus. I'm asking Peach."

Zelda faced Peach comfortingly. "Well? Peach, what is your answer?"

The girl nervously looked around for a moment. All eyes were on her in this hallway just before classes starting. There were eyes of hatred, jealousy, and anger. It was all because Roy Flores asked her out on a date. There were eyes of awe; some people were just as surprised as she was at the fact that the redhead took an interest in her. There were eyes of support, comfort, and patience from her best friends, who would still love her no matter what decision she made. And then there were eyes of hope. Hope from Roy Flores himself wishing that the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom would say "yes" to his question.

She looked back and forth, and she knew that the answer laid in her heart. She closed her eyes for a moment, searching for that true answer. She opened her eyes and finally faced Flores in the eye.

She nodded her head before loudly speaking, "Yes, Roy. I'd love to go on a date with you."

* * *

_A/N: Blaarrrrgggghh!! I come back from the dead!! I am the new Kraken from the South China Sea! Fear me! Feeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrr mmeeeeee!! I apologize for the late update. Three cans of Pepsi, a "Ballroom Blitz", and a pink Sony Ericsson can do wonders for me. I've been trying to really flesh out these characters and their flaws. Hopefully, you've noticed some of them by now.  
_

_And yes, I can totally imagine Disco Marth dancing to the Bee Gees. Shut up, you know that you're jealous because you couldn't think up of a kick-ass name for Marth's flashy, white outfit for Melee and Brawl and my ingenious vision of Prince Marth dancing. I finally have Brawl now. Vote my poll if you want Brawl characters or not._

_Mummy, (Royal Kenya/RK) I hope you're proud of me for finishing this chapter. And thank you so so SO much for beta reading that library section between Marth and Samus. You've saved me! That section would've seriously been unrealistic if it weren't for you. Now get to work on feeding yo' baby and update My Smile Is Yours! Same goes to you, HMC, with Heart of Steel (I still deserve credit for the title) and LAH._

_All of those peeps who review'd, favorite'd, and alert'd... thank you so much. I appreciate your support, patience, and love._ _This has been difficult for me, but I'm going at my own pace._

_Ummm... I have nothing else to say, except that I seriously need to hang out with a person whose user name ends with "ief" by the end of this summer. If not, he'll be guaranteed to be castrated a thousand times. :P  
_

_-BKP_

* * *


	16. Waning & Growing

**Waning & Growing**

At exactly six o'clock pm, Peach Toadstool's black limousine had pulled in front of a foreign restaurant. Supposedly, this was the place that Roy Flores had asked to meet up with Peach. He explained to her on Thursday that he had already reserved a table at a new restaurant called Le Train Bleu. She remembered him telling her that the Nintendo Press newspaper had given the restaurant five stars. So he wanted to try it out with her.

She slowly stepped out of her limo, wearing a nice, flower-beaded pink tank top and a short, coral pink skirt along with matching heels. Clutching her matching-pink-handbag, she entered the restaurant. As soon as she stepped through the restaurant's doors, Peach felt as if she had been punched in the face.

The restaurant was _gorgeous._ Or perhaps "gorgeous" wasn't the correct word. It was large, formal, and ritzy. The lobby of the restaurant was decorated in oriental, bright red carpets, mahogany tables with high-priced vases and fresh cut roses in the vases. There was even an attractive host waiting near her with a smile on his face.

"Hello, Miss! A table for one?" The host asked at a startled Peach.

A flush of pink started to spread on her face. Her skirt was too short. She was showing off her arms and a bit of her chest area. This wasn't appropriate for this high-class restaurant; she was wearing too "casual" clothing. It was clear that everyone in this restaurant would stare at her selection of clothing, because even the host raised an eyebrow at her. He was probably wearing a designer suit for his job, and there was no mistake that he was very astonished to see a "middle-class" girl in the lobby. She wanted to escape out of this place as soon as possible.

"Uh, Miss? May I please help you?" The host asked, concerned for the Princess. There was no turning back now. Roy would have thought that she stood him up if she didn't see him soon.

"Erm... yes. I'm supposed to meet with my date. He said he had a table reserved under the name of Roy Flores," Peach quickly explained.

The man's glanced down at his guest list; his eyes shot back up at the Princess.

"Ah! Yes! Right, this was, Miss Toadstool. Master Flores has reserved a table in the West Wing! Please follow me right this way!"

The Princess nodded her head, following the host towards her table. Everyone was giving her an odd look. They were all staring at her as if she had already made a mistake. When she finally arrived at the reserved table, she felt as if she was going to drop both her handbag and her jaw. She definitely felt out of place.

Roy Flores was absolutely stunning. He was wearing a short-sleeved, button-up silk black shirt along with a white silk tie, black pants, and, to top it all off, a nice black jacket. The black looked _good_ on him. No, "good" didn't describe it well enough. "Sexy" was more like it. He didn't look like the usual, intelligent, understanding, and overachiever Roy Flores that he was. He appeared to be more mysterious and charming, wearing black from top to bottom.

"Hey Peach," he greeted with a welcoming smile.

Peach said nothing. She continued to blink dumbly at Roy's appearance.

"You look nice, Peach," he commented.

"Thanks," Peach muttered as she took her seat.

"Good evening, Master and Miss," a waiter said with a smile. "I'll be your waiter tonight here at Le Train Bleu. My name is Kyou, now can I start you two off with a drink? I'm assuming that you're both under twenty-one, so no alcohol, correct?"

"Correct, Kyou. No alcohol for us," Roy replied.

"Well, Miss, what would you like to have to drink?" Kyou the waiter asked.

"... Um... I'll have an orange cream soda," she said, looking up from the "Beverages" section of her menu.

"Make that two," Roy said as he looked at Peach and winked. Another bright color of pink came to her cheeks, and she looked down at her handbag in her lap.

As Roy fiddled around with his fork, Peach took this opportunity to get a closer look at her surroundings. Noticing the folded, cloth napkin on her plate, she quickly set it in her lap. The table and the chairs itself were obviously pretty nice, but when she looked down at her eating utensils, she couldn't help but notice how many there were! There were at least _five _forks and knives on each side of her! She couldn't remember from her princess lessons which one she'd have to use first for the first course. Also, there were also three different water glasses for her to use, and a fork and spoon in front of her stacked plates.

"You start your way out... and then you work your way in," a voice calmly explained.

Peach's eyes flew up. "Huh?"

"For the first course, you start out with the outer eating utensils and then as more courses come you keep on using each outer utensil at the time. So for the second course dish, you use the fourth fork and knife, counting from the plate," Roy told her.

"Are we really going to eat five courses?" Peach asked nervously, worrying about how much her stomach could handle early in the evening.

"Eh. Maybe. If we can't finish any food, I'll just ask Kyou to pack up all the food to go or something. I'm sure he won't mind," Roy replied.

"... Do you know what the spoon and fork set in front of the plate is supposed to be used for?"

"Those are dessert utensils. The fork is the cake fork and the spoon is just a dessert spoon."

"Mmm... How come there are three water glasses?"

"Two of them aren't water glasses, Peach. Actually, they're wine glasses. You see this one?" He pointed to the middle glass lined up on his end. "That's the wineglass for red wine. The wineglass closest to you is the one you use for white wine."

"Ah, I see. I forgot all about this stuff when I was little," Peach said shyly, flushing madly.

"Yeah?"

"Yes, we don't really have that much formal dinners these days. Especially since Nintendo City is being modernized lately."

"Hah. That's completely different in Pherae. We're required to know all of this shit. You know, being a Master Lord and all. It's miserable," he commented as Peach raised her eyebrows.

"Sounds like it," Peach replied.

An awkward silence came between the two and the Princess found herself distracted once again by the atmosphere of the restaurant. She looked around at other customers, noticing how well dressed they all were. Most of them were wearing _ballgowns_ and finely tailored suits. She looked back at Roy, who was playing with the table centerpiece, and felt ashamed.

"Here you are!" Kyou reported as he set two bottles of orange cream soda in front of the couple along with straws.

As Roy took a sip of his cream soda, Peach Toadstool's eyes glanced upwards to see a dome-like ceiling painting with angels and beautifully detailed humans. It looked as if it came from the Rococo Era from France. There were elaborate and intricate designs carved everywhere in the pillars, holding the dome up. Everything in this restaurant was extravagant.

Yes, Peach definitely felt out of place. The whole restaurant looked like an overpriced dining area in which opera singers would happily chomp away on their food. The place was for the rich and the famous. By the way she was dressed, she only appeared to be a commoner. She heard whispering and comments from different tables of the room; her eyes wandered all around the dining area. Some people's gazes shifted away shortly after she made contact with them. She was sure that a few people were commenting on her look and saying how disgrace it was for her to be dressed so casually.

"Erm... I have to go to the bathroom, Roy," Peach told him as she placed her napkin on the table and stood up.

Roy nodded. "Alright, take your time. It may be a while after I actually decide to order something. Gosh, this place really has a large selection of food!"

"... Right," she said quickly, grabbing her handbag with her.

She dashed to the bathroom. Even the bathroom was very white, bright, clean, and just as ritzy as the restaurant. The white and gold almost blinded Peach with its elegance. Taking this opportunity to herself, she locked herself in a bathroom stall and sat down on the toilet seat. That way nobody can bother her. She was safe. She was perfectly comfortable seating herself on a toilet seat. None of those ritzy folks could bug her, and she wouldn't have to worry about being judged by them. She pulled out a compact mirror from her handbag and looked at her face to double check her make up. The bruise was still safely covered up. She took a long gasp of air and sighed.

"Oh God, what have I gotten myself into?" She asked herself nervously. She leaned her head against the side of the stall, closed her eyes, and thought back about what happened the other day.

* * *

_It was Friday. It was just one day before Peach's and Roy's date. She was feeling sick. For some reason, the lunch she bought today was giving her stomach ache and she felt as if she could throw up any minute. Thank God school was over. The only reason why she was staying around the Super Smash Brothers High School was because she had to see Mrs. Pierce for some make up work. Now that was settled, she could finally go to the girls' washroom and dump all of her vomit in there._

_Clutching her stomach, she slowly sauntered down the hallways to get to the bathroom as soon as possible. A tap. Someone was tapping her left shoulder. As soon as she turned around, she felt a fist meet her right cheek. The blow's impact had her flying a few feet back, and hit her back against the wall of lockers to the opposite side of the hall. The pain stung sharply as if a dagger had stabbed her right cheek. She was certain that a bruise would appear later._

_"So, Toadstool... Enjoying yourself with Roy's attention?" A familiar voice questioned. _

_She knew that voice. Rachel Livingston. The blonde who had a curvy figure and bright blue eyes just like hers. _

_"I shouldn't have to ask; I know you're having a good time with him," she hissed with loathing. The twin pair of blue eyes met each other at that point, and it was clear to Peach that Rachel's eyes had a fire in them. A burning passion of extreme hatred, an unfathomable emotion. Even she herself wouldn't understand what hatred that Rachel had for her. _

_"Flores would never actually consider __**you**__ as his girlfriend," one of Rachel's freshman cronies squeaked. _

_"Yeah! Why would he pick someone like you to date anyway? You're useless. You're quiet. You're dumb. You can't do anything right! You're an eyesore to this school! He probably only asked you out to humiliate you!" Another freshman reported._

_"You're better off dead," Rachel began to say, "Nobody likes you in this school. You got that? Nobody. Nobody did, and nobody ever will. We all know what you are. A loner. A freak. A disgusting, little girl who hides behind her hair all day. Nobody likes a girl like that. Nobody."_

_Smirking to herself, Rachel tightly grabbed a fistful of Peach's hair. Peach's stomach lurched again. She really felt as if she could throw up right now. She could vomit all over the place and get out that horrible, nauseous feeling inside of her. Rachel was going to tear out strands of her hair. The other girl only pulled her hair upwards, making Peach stand up from the lockers. _

_"If he asks you to be his girlfriend, you'll say 'no'. I command you to. You will do it. You know what Megan, Caitlin, and I can do if we see you together with him. You may think I'm powerless just because I don't have Megan with me right now... but you're wrong. I still have power over you. You knew that from day one!" Rachel screeched as she pummeled Peach's stomach once. Twice. And now finally a third._

_Each blow was making her even more sick. There was a sweet taste in her mouth now, and when she swallowed that taste down, she felt even more nauseous_. _Rachel gave her another socking blow to the stomach, and Peach knew she wouldn't be able to take the next punch._

_"Hmph. Smile for me, Toadstool. I wanna see if you're teeth are red with blood," the MRL fan club vice-president said._

_She didn't smile. She didn't want to smile. She already knew well enough that it was her blood that tasted sweet earlier and the same blood that made her sick when she swallowed it. She didn't want to smile because she hated that sickening look Livingston would make once she saw her teeth._

_"SMILE, YOU IDIOT! SMILE, OR I'LL RIP YOUR EYEBALLS OUT! SMILE FOR ME NOW, YOU FREAK!" _

_With a slow tug of her lips, she produced a flash of semi-red teeth. The upper part of her lower teeth were stained red and the lower part of her upper teeth were also of the same color. It was blood-ruby red. The other blonde just smirked delightfully. _

_"Now that's beautiful," she suddenly whispered softly. As Peach began to look back into Rachel's blue eyes, she felt a slap across her face. _

_She fell down to the floor that time and her body couldn't take it anymore. No, her stomach couldn't take it anymore._

_**BBBLLLLLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECCCCCCCCCCCCCKKK!!!!!!**_

_There was vomit all over the cleaned hallway of the Super Smash Brothers High School. The putrid smell began to stink all over the place, and Rachel gave another disgusted look at Peach._

_"Agh! Disgusting! What the hell do you think you're doing!?" She angrily inquired._

_But the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom's figure continued to be hunched over on the floor, spitting out the disgusting contents of her lunch. Her eyes were watered up from the pain and, most importantly, from the fact she was trying so hard to get all of that vomit out of her body. When her eyesight finally cleared up, she could see the blood in her vomit. She stared at it for a while, surprised to see how much blood there was from Rachel's punching._

"_Hah. You truly are a freak. Vomiting all of over the hallway floor like that. I honestly don't see why Roy asked you out on a date." She seized the collar of Peach's school uniform and brought her towards her face. "You will do as I say. Or I'll make sure that your life is as miserable as it can be. I'll tell everyone in the school what you did to Megan three years ago. How much of a 'friend' you were. I'll tell everyone about how fucked everything up in our lives and made it the way it is now."_

_With that said, she spat in Peach's hair three times. "Each spit is from each one of us."_

_A clang rang about in the hallways, and one of Livingston's followers looked down towards the other end of the hallway. "Shit! The janitor is here! We better go or he'll send us to the principal!"_

_Rachel threw Peach back down at the lockers. "Remember what I said, Toadstool._ _Remember what I said, or I'll fucking kill you," She said. She smirked once more at the Princess' misery, and left._

_Peach rested her head against the lockers as she just sat there blinking a few times. Her brain tried to comprehend everything that had just happened. Wheels, clattering, and squeaking could be heard from the cart approaching her._ _Soon, the janitor came with his cleaning cart, noticing the mess she had made._

_"Did you throw up here?" He asked impatiently._

_She slowly nodded._ _The janitor shook his head a few times and sighed._

_"Mother fucking kids," he muttered. "I've always got to clean up their shit. Once I clean something up, it gets dirty again. I hate this job so much."_

_He took one of his cleaning buckets and a mop. "Here," he said. "Clean this up by the time I get back. You're not leaving this place until I see the hallway floor as spotless as it was fifteen minutes ago. You got that?"_

_The Princess nodded her head again._

_"Good. Start now,"_ _was the last thing he said before he left._

_With a sniffle, Peach slowly brought herself up. The tears just began to gush out of her eyes as she still couldn't believe that this was all happening to her. She didn't understand this at all. Why was the world so unfair? Why did her rays of happiness always had to evaporate into thin air? What did she do wrong? Ignoring each and every question, she just wiped her remaining tears with the back sleeve of her uniform and began to mop the lonely hallway of Super Smash Brothers High._

* * *

She opened her eyes; she remembered it all quite too clearly. Using her compact mirror, she made sure the bruise on her cheek from Rachel's punch was covered up properly. She delicately stroked her cheek and winced. The pain was still there, stinging all over her face. It was as if even the lightest touch from Peach's fingers would cause her pain. It stung as if a ten thousand weight had hit her. Deeply inhaling some more air, she sat up straight. All of a sudden, something whooshed open. Her body froze. What was going on? Someone was invading her private place. She checked the bottom half of the stall, left and right, and saw no one occupying any of the other stalls. That must mean...

"Mommy! Mommy! Put some more blush on me!" A voice cried out happily.

The bathroom was being occupied by some other people.

"Honey, calm down. Don't make such noise! Even though you're in the restroom, it's not good to make so much noise. Now hold on, dear. Let me find the blush from purse," an older voice replied.

The Princess peeked through the crack of her stall. As she expected, a five year old girl and her mother were in the resting area of the washroom. With fair hair, skin, and finely sewn gowns, they put Peach's cute outfit to shame. The mother was dabbing her daughter's cheeks when the five year old said:

"Hey, Mommy... Did you see that couple sitting two tables away from us?"

"Yes? What about them?"

"I feel sorry for that girl. You know, the one dressed in all pink."

Peach's body froze again. They were talking about _her_.

_'Don't panic,'_ she thought. _'I don't know them. Whatever they say shouldn't harm me. They don't understand me. I shouldn't give two cents about them.'_

"Her boyfriend took her to a high-class restaurant, yet she's dressed casually. She's probably very poor and has a horrible taste in fashion to pick out those clothes she wore for her date," the little girl explained.

_'I can't listen to them. It's nothing. That girl is just a kid. What she says doesn't matter,'_ Peach reasoned. _'They don't know that I'm a princess.'_

"I still can't believe it. Doesn't she know what restaurant this is? Le Train Bleu. A restaurant originally from France here in Nintendo City. What idiot wouldn't know about this place? And what idiot wouldn't know about dressing up to dine here?"

"Now, now, Cecilia. Always remember not to judge people," the mother began to say.

_'Oh, good. The mom is finally starting to talk some sense in the girl.' _Peach's body relaxed a little bit, knowing that the grown woman would explain some things to her child.

"However, you shouldn't judge people by their clothes. Rather, you should judge them by their make up. From the looks of it, that girl was probably wearing some really cheap lip gloss. I suppose she must be a prostitute for that young man or something. Probably another _Pretty Woman_ like girl."

If it wouldn't have made so much noise, the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom would've banged her head against the bathroom stalls several times at that moment. She couldn't believe it. Why were these people being so ignorant and judging her only from her physical appearance. First of all, she didn't understand why that girl commented on her clothes. They were perfectly fine, and not "unfashionable". Secondly, her lip gloss was not cheap. But what should she expect? Nobody understood the real her. And yet, why was Roy so interested in her? Maybe Rachel Livingston was right. Maybe all Roy Flores was that typical, popular guy who enjoyed to pick on girls of lower social status in popularity rank.

"Alright, darling, all done with the blush! Let's go back to Daddy now!" The mother happily said. "We can all eat dessert now!"

"Yay! Cake time!"

The creak of the door opened and was slammed shut after the departure of the two. Finally emerging from her stall, the Princess took the opportunity to look at herself in bathroom mirror. She wanted to get out. Escape as soon as possible. She desperately looked around the bathroom for window. Maybe if she found a window, she could just easily get out of this horrid situation and not face Flores ever again. Ditch her date. But then it struck her. What was wrong with her? In some ways, she should be happy that she was out in a fancy restaurant with Roy Flores. Even if he was just using her, he was doing a pretty good job of acting like gentleman. Besides, she had been wanting to get out of her castle for quite some time now. Staring back to her mirror reflection, she knew that there was no turning back now. She knew what she had to do. She had to muster up all of that courage inside her, get out there, and face her fears. She had nothing to fear, but fear itself.

* * *

"Hm? Oh, you're back!" Roy said happily.

Peach meekly smiled.

"Yeah, sorry about that. I got caught up with a few people there," she explained, nervously seating herself back down. As lady-like as she could, she placed her napkin back in her lap and forced a smile.

"Have you decided what you're going to order yet, Peach?"

"Nope, but let me look at the menu right now," she replied. Scanning down the list, she really had no idea what to eat. Hunger still didn't hit her stomach yet, and all of the dishes just seemed so _pricey._ Even though Roy was a Master Lord, she still would have the weight of guilt inside of her for making him pay so much for their first date.

"Miss, have you decided for the first course?" A voice asked.

She paused. "Huh?"

"What's your order for the first dish?" Kyou, the waiter, asked.

"Uhhhh... Chicken," she responded absent mindlessly. Roy frowned at the sight. He knew what was on her mind.

Kyou's face was traced with confusion and shock. "Erm... Alright? Specifically that is?"

"Em, ... ummm... I-I-" She began to stammer.

"That's enough, Kyou. Forget it," a voice intervened.

"Huh?" the waiter and Peach said, surprised.

"I said that was enough," Roy clearly stated. "It looks we won't be dining here this evening. I'm sorry for the inconvenience."

He dug in his trouser's pockets, fishing out a few bills. "Here," he said, setting the bills and his napkin down on the table. "For the cream sodas. We'll take these bottles and be on our way out."

"Uh, sir! Are you sure you don't need a check?" Kyou asked, baffled at what the Pheraen was doing at that moment.

"Nope, no need," he explained, rising from his chair and grabbing his bottle of orange cream soda. "C'mon, Peach. Let's get out of here."

"Sir, is there a problem with you and this restaurant?" Kyou questioned suspiciously. "Did our restaurant not meet your expectations or taste?"

"Well, you could say that. But it seemed to not meet my date's taste rather than mine," Roy said. Peach stared at him in disbelief. What in the world was he saying? Another pang of guilt started to eat around in Peach's insides.

"I guess this was a little bit over the top for a first date. Anyway, please do not be offended!" He took out a ¥ 10,000 bill from his suit pocket and slipped it in Kyou's breast pocket. "We deeply apologize for the inconvenience we've caused the restaurant. Please take this tip! Have a nice day!"

He took Peach's hand, smiled, and began to lead her out of the restaurant. However, a voice stopped him from doing so.

"... Are you insulting me, young man?" Kyou growled angrily. (1) His voice was several notes lower and his eyes were glaring at the young Pheraen.

"... Insulting? No! Of course not!"

"Then what is the meaning of this tip!?" The waiter yelled. "Are you saying I can't do my job right?!"

"Lords no! I'm not saying that at all! What the hell? I'm being nice here! I'm trying to thank you for the time and patience you had with us!" Roy yelled back.

"Nice!? How is that 'nice'?! You _dare_ give me money for something you feel that I can't do right?"

The whole restaurant was dead silent and all eyes were on the waiter and the customer. Peach sighed. Clearly, Roy wasn't accustomed to some of the modern day culture of Nintendo City.

"Kyou sir, I deeply apologize for my partner's tip," she said, stepping forward and removing from the ¥ 10,000 bill from his pocket. "Once again, I apologize. Roy is a Pheraen, and is not aware of some of the modern day values here in Nintendo City. I hope we didn't offend you too much. Apparently for Roy's hometown, they don't consider it rude to tip a person, but as a compliment."

She smiled warmly, and bowed her head. "We'll be off now. Thank you once again for everything, Kyou."

The waiter's face had calmed down since his heated little misunderstanding with Roy. He smiled back at the young lady and bowed formally. "My pleasure, my lady," he said, taking her hand and kissing the back of it. Roy could swear a thousand burning flames of rage had been lit in his body. The stupid waiter was hitting on his date! Peach giggled a little bit.

"Good night!" She said, turning her back on him. "Alright, Roy, are you ready to go?"

The boy quickly shook off his jealously and nodded his head. "Alright. This crappy restaurant isn't good enough for us. Let's bolt!"

Smiling at each other, the couple quickly exited the restaurant to carry on with their date. Finally, they were free to be themselves without being judged.

* * *

"You're an asshole," a voice told the Prince.

A blue haired boy looked up from his book. "Huh?"

"You're a freakin' ASSHOLE," she reported again.

He rolled his eyes.

"Aran, I understand you're pissed. Though, you have to admit... _you_ were the one who was being a bitch initially to go off and insult me like that in the middle of the hallway the other day!" He reported.

"Me? Stop finding a scapegoat, Lowell! Be a man for once, grow some balls, and stop blaming shit on me! It's your fault we're like this!"

"Grow some balls? How about you do that then? Since you think you're _sooo_ much better than I am! Oh wait, I'm sorry. You can't do that because you're a girl! You know, the more I think about it... I shouldn't have blamed you in the first place. It really is better this way. Everyone would think the world has gone mad if they saw us getting along," Marth reasoned, going back to reading his research source about Pichus.

"Hah! You're telling me! The day I'm caught getting along with you in public will be the day I die and go to Heaven!"

Marth sighed heavily. "Can we just _please_ end this for now? Lords, we have to get cracking on researching Pichus! The last time we met up to research about them, we ended up a discussion about the Tournament, ganging up, and pride! If we keep up this rate, Mrs. Pierce will kill us. God, it's lucky we discovered that was an _Eastern_ Nintendo City Public Library that closes at nine compared to that _Central_ Nintendo City Public Library."

"Fine, Prince Dickhead."

"Princess Vagina head," the Prince attempted to retaliate. He immediately regretted saying that though; it wasn't a good come back.

"... HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!"

"What's so funny!?" The Altean inquired shrilly.

"The fact that you said "vagina head". Hahaha! That's just so lame and sooo cheesy! What guy would use the word "vagina" as an insult?" Samus replied, clutching the sides of her abdomen.

The Prince sighed once again. "Ugh. Whatever! Like I said, we have to start the worksheet about our species! Come _on_, Aran. I want to get this done. The worksheet is due next Monday. And I certainly don't want to wait on Sunday night to finally start cracking on this."

"Okay, okay, fine," the bounty huntress grumbled.

"Alright... First question: "What is your species main source of life energy/food?"" Marth read off from his sheet.

"... That'd be just plain Pokémon food, now wouldn't it?" The bounty huntress questioned.

"Yeah, I guess so. Next question: "How does your species reproduce?" ... That's easy. A male Pichu finds a female Pichu, gets in her pants, and shawbang! An egg is spawned!" Marth stated as he began to scribble down his answer.

"... You know, you could've spared me from that detail," Samus said, rolling her eyes.

"Hey, we already know about sexual reproduction. We learned all about it in great detail in middle school. I bet we're going to learn about it again this year as well. Besides, I doubt Mrs. Pierce is going to actually collect these worksheets. She's just probably gonna check them to see if we fully completed the sheet," Marth said. "Anyway, soooo... question number three: "What type of cell does your species have?" Well, what do you think, Aran?"

"Definitely eukaryote cells. We're studying _Pichus_, for God sake. Not bacteria. Pichu cells totally have a nucleus in them," Samus Aran replied. She picked up her pen and wrote it down. "Number four: "What are the life stages of your species?" Well, so we start with an egg. And then we go to a Pichu. A Pichu evolves to become a Pikachu and the Pikachu becomes a Raichu... and then a Raichu does not evolve to anything, I guess. So it just dies... Or something."

"Yeah, I guess you could say that. We'll have to research about it more later," Marth agreed, writing down his answer as well.

"Okay. Now, final question. "How long does your general species of life live?"," Samus read out loud. "... Damn. How the hell are we supposed to know?!"

"Eh, I don't know. Check the encyclopedia," Marth said as he titled his chair back and relaxed. Narrowing her eyes at him, she grabbed the nearby book Marth had pulled out earlier. The bounty hunter quickly flipped through the pages of the gigantic reference source, only to flip back and forth between pages.

"... The freakin' encyclopedia doesn't say! Gargh!"

"Okay, you know what? Go to a computer and type in "How long does a Pokémon live?" in an online search box," Marth suggested while the bounty huntress glared at him.

"No! How about you do it? It's your turn to look shit up," Samus reported, crossing her arms. Also narrowing his eyes at her, the Prince reluctantly retreated towards a free, library computer. Samus, intrigued, continued to read the encyclopedia page devoted to Pichus "Hmmm... Interesting. Pichus can hurt themselves with their own power since they don't know how to control them? Wow, the poor babies!"

"Okay, back," Marth said.

"That was quick. Now what did you get?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing?! That can't be right!" Samus exclaimed loudly.

"Shhh!!" A nearby librarian hissed at her. The young woman glared at the blonde. "Quiet! You're supposed to speak _quietly_ to each other!"

"Sorry, Miss," Samus said. The librarian continued to glare at her for a moment more before leaving the two. "But are you dead serious about the results?"

"Yeah. I typed in what you said, and I got zero results," Marth replied.

"Argh! You know what? I'm BSing this. I want full credit for this worksheet, so I'll just write: "fourteen years" for a Pichu's life span," Samus reported as she began to write away.

"... Fourteen years? Do you really think a Pokémon like a Pichu can live for fourteen years?" Marth questioned, hesitant on doing the same thing as Samus.

"Well, do you have a better number to come up with!? Whatever. It's done. I already wrote it in ink. And if Mrs. Pierce notices different answers, she'll suspect something," Samus said. The Prince of Altea sighed and shook his head for putting up with the blonde girl.

"Fine. I'll write the same answer as you." Finishing the last question, he put his pencil down and crossed his arms. Quietness started to come between the two; nothing was said. It was funny for the both of them. For one minute, they'd be arguing as if the fires of Hell were burning all over the place. The next minute they'd be calm and tranquil like the ocean. It wasn't until Samus decided to break the silence:

"What's your life like?" She questioned suddenly.

Marth looked at her; blue eyes met green again.

"Huh?"

"Your life," she stated again. A bright color of pink was tinted on her face as she shifted her eyes away from his. "What's it like?"

"Why are you so interested all of a sudden?" Marth asked. He wasn't offended by her question, but more curious to know why.

"I don't know!" She outburst. "You always go on about how you have to "work hard" since you're a prince and shit... Yet, I can't see why a prince like you has to work hard. You can just sit on your ass all day, snap your fingers, and whatever you want will come."

Marth half smiled at that comment. "For physical objects? Yeah. I can basically do that. But for my own future and other things? ... I can't do that. I sometimes feel that the life of a prince is harder compared to someone like you," he said. For once, the Altean Prince's eyes seemed to be filled with sorrow as opposed to that cocky nature he normally had.

Samus tilted her head to the side and said: "Hn?"

"I mean... My father was killed. So my older sister Ellis and I are basically the future to Altea. Ellis will probably be married off to some sort of prince from a neighboring country... And that just leaves me. I have to take up the throne of Altea and become king since I'm a guy. Of course, all of my advisers are preparing me for that role. The fact that I'm already president of student council and have good grades doesn't meet their expectations. They think I should be more well-rounded in school. They're always making sure I'm doing some extra curricular activity besides student council. They don't want me to come home early."

"... Yeah?" Samus asked.

"Yeah," Marth sighed. "I really... I don't know. Sports are fun and all, but I don't like student council. It's boring being a president of your whole grade. You have to organize everything. It's just troublesome. I understand where my advisers are coming from when they say that this position is good for me to prepare for my reign as king... but can't they just spare me once in a while? I want to enjoy the time I have remaining. I'm still young. I'm... scared, actually. I'm scared that all of those experiences and opportunities that normal teenagers experience in Nintendo City will pass by me. And I'm not going to experience each and every one."

"Like what _kind_ of experiences?"

"I don't know. Maybe having a girlfriend for once," the Prince replied sadly, titling his chair back again.

"Hah! All of those relationships most kids have are LAME! Most of those relationships are based off of having sex. You believe you're "in love" with that person when all you do is just hang out, get to know each other better, and kiss all the time. It's stupid... Everyone thinks they're all "mature" and shit because they've had sex. Just because you've shoved a guy's dick down your throat and having that guy ditch you for someone else doesn't make you mature at all. It just means you're experienced. Experienced isn't the same as maturity. For someone like me, I'd rather have that experience of mature love rather than that typical, high school love the majority of our grade goes through," Samus explained as she smiled confidently. Marth looked back up at her.

"Why?"

"Because that love would be a thousand times sweeter than most relationships. It's nice to feel real love. It's more beautiful. A lot of girls in our school who are in a relationship... they think they can always change their boyfriend around to make them the ideal boyfriend, you know? And it's stupid. It's like, "Why are you even in a relationship with that doofus if you don't even love him for who he is?" Why should anyone change themselves to just be in a relationship? It's sooo lame. Making a person change just for you is completely selfish. Most of us are just only in love with the potential thing a person could become. That's why I just say: "Screw high school relationships all together! Fuck the woorrrrlldd! I stand ALONE"," Samus smiled brightly.

The Prince's eyes blinked a few times. "Huh... Then what is your life like?"

Samus' smile dropped and a gloomy look was replaced on her face. "One word: lonely."

"Lonely?" Marth questioned. "... I don't understand what you mean by that. You just lectured me about how most relationships are stupid and how you're happy to be alone... and yet you're lonely?"

Samus only sighed, cast her eyes down at the library table, and shrugged her shoulders.

"I... really don't get you. You seem... not pleased that you're lonely," Marth commented.

The bounty huntress eyes shot back towards Marth. "Of course. To me... loneliness is the worst emotion possible. I hurt myself with my own loneliness. But I'd rather do that than get in a relationship with someone and have him break my heart because he didn't actually care at all," Samus explained. She rested her chin on her left hand as she sighed again.

"I don't think there's anyone else that I could love besides the man I love right now," Samus said with a fond look on her face. She smiled gently and the Prince somehow felt his body temperature rising.

"Yeah? And who is that guy?" Marth inquired a little bit forcefully.

_'Damn, if she wasn't always bitchy and angry at me all the time... she'd look pretty cute like that. Wait a minute. What the hell? She's got such a... soft, nice look on her face. I don't know who that guy is... but damn. He's probably pretty special to her since she's smiling that way... Darn it. Why doesn't she smile like that more often?'_ Marth thought.

She closed her eyes for a moment, opened them, and smiled confidently. "Douglas Falcon."

Marth suddenly started to feel jealous at that moment. What the hell was wrong with him? He never got jealous over anything! He was a player! Players don't fall in love with girls! And players especially stay away from a girl like Samus Aran...

"He's really really really special to me. Because of that guy, I've learned a lot of things. And yet, I miss him so much," the blonde said as she smiled once again. Her head turned towards the library window. "I wonder what he's doing right now..."

"Where is he?" the bluehead said, trying his best not to grumble through his words.

"Away. Out of this country. He's in the States right now. He got this sweet deal to race professionally in the States, so he just dove in and took up that offer," Samus said cheerfully.

"And why didn't you go with him?" Marth asked again, still trying to not sound upset.

"Because I have a life here. I couldn't bear to leave this place. This place is my home. Besides, Falcon wasn't fond of the idea of me dropping out of school to support him," Samus' eyes started to fill with sorrow again.

"So, how do you maintain a long distance relationship with him? Do you call him often?"

"Oh no. We're not together like that anymore. We broke up because he didn't feel as if he could love me in the "right way" or something. I still don't know what he means by that. I don't have any hard feelings on him for that, but he does occasionally call me from time to time. He wants to make sure I'm doing well by myself," Samus explained nervously.

_'Score! She's single! Yes! Oh man! This is good! Wait... why is this good, Marthie boy!? Why am I "scoring" over her? This is SAMUS ARAN I'm dealing with! She's a bitch! She calls me an "asshole" and "Prince Dickhead" behind my back!! This isn't right! What am I doing!?' _Marth asked himself anxiously.

The girl smiled once again at the Prince and looked at her watch. "Oh shit. It's getting late. I should go," she began to say, collecting her stuff.

"Yeah, me too. I should probably get going as well," the Prince said, grabbing his coat as well.

Gathering their materials, Marth took a glimpse at Samus' face. He still didn't get it. She looked so bright and happy even if she was single. Was she really that content with being alone? She'd be very pretty if she did something with her hair, face, and choice of fashion. But by the way her eyes looked, it appeared as if she was forcing herself to be happy. Her smile was superficial. In a few seconds, she had gathered all of her stuff and briskly walked out of the reading room. Marth hesitantly followed her all the way to the library entrance. He glanced around at the deserted streets of Nintendo City, noting that he was alone with her.

"Whoah, man! Look up!" Samus shouted as she pointed her finger up to the sky.

"... What?" He said, directing his glance up. A silver orb was glowing brightly along with smaller dots shining just as brightly around it. They shone that night. It seemed as if they were shining brighter than usual on an autumn's night. It was as if they were entrancing the two high schoolers with it's beauty. "Oh... The moon."

"Isn't it beautiful, dude? It's like... wow. Beautiful," Samus smiled.

"Yeah, it is," Marth said, smiling softly back at her. He bit his lip before adding, "... Are your stars and moon like that? Do they shine that brightly every night?"

Samus directed her attention at him; her eyes met his once again.

"Maybe... I don't know... I feel like they're abnormally bright tonight. Why are you asking me this by the way?"

"I don't know either," Marth began to say, "... This question just popped up in my mind... Despite the time compression between the different worlds... I wonder if we all look at the same things compared to some people."

"I see...... Aaaa... aaaccCCCHHOOO!!" She sneezed.

"Bless you," the Altean said, pulling out a tissue from his coat pocket.

"Thanks. It's cold here," the young girl said, hugging herself and taking the tissue from his hands.

"Well, what do you expect? Winter is coming pretty soon. Nintendo City will get colder," Marth stated as the girl nodded. She quickly shifted her eyes at the Prince and then back to the ground. The bounty huntress faced the boy.

"Anyway. I better get going. I'll see you around, Lowell."

"See ya, Aran," Marth said, waving good-bye. The bounty huntress smiled a little bit at him as she turned and left. Once alone, the Prince said softly to himself: "See ya... Samus."

* * *

"So where do you wanna go now?" the redhead questioned anxiously.

The Princess said nothing for a moment. "Uhhh..." She had no clue where she would want to go for her date with Roy. As a matter of fact, she had been relying on Roy for everything on this date.

"Are you hungry?" Roy asked with more anxiousness in his tone of voice.

"Erm... Not really," Peach said nervously.

"Then what would you like to do?"

"I... I, uh, don't know..."

"Do you like ice cream?"

"... Yeah, of course I do."

"Then do you want to go over there for some ice cream?" Roy asked, pointing towards an ice cream street vendor.

"Hmmm... Yeah, sure! I guess I'll have some ice cream right now!" Peach said cheerfully. With that said, Roy's muscles relaxed. Finally, she was feeling less nervous and more open. This was only the beginning step to what he was planning to do...

"Great! What flavor would you like?"

"Chocolate chip cookie dough is my favorite flavor!" Peach happily replied.

"Hah, oh really? I know I love mint chocolate chip," Roy said, grinning eagerly. "Okay then! Wait here and I'll get your order!"

"Alright," Peach said. As the redhead left her be, the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom looked around. She didn't recognize the place Roy and she were wandering. Wherever it was, it was definitely part of Central Nintendo City.

"Hey! I got your ice cream!" Roy said happily, handing her the ice cream cone.

"Thank you, Roy," Peach smiled.

"No problem!"

"Mm! It's delicious," she said after taking a lick.

Following her example, the Master Lord also licked at his ice cream. "Heck yeah, it is! It's really good. It's better than I expected."

Consuming her chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream, the Princess and the Master Lord walked down the sidewalk. She shyly looked down as they continued to walk together on the sidewalks. This was embarrassing. She finally felt herself a bit happy with Roy Flores. At times, she'd take a peek at him. He'd face her and grin. Her cheeks would grow hot, and her eyes would soon be staring back at her feet. To avoid eye contact from him, she turned her head to the right and that's where she saw it. She saw the most beautiful thing at this time of night. Her feet stopped as she would stare bewilderedly at the amazing place.

"Oh," she said in awe.

"Hn? What?" Roy asked. He stopped in his tracks as well, wondering what Peach was doing. She tugged his right sleeve of his jacket, and pointed towards a Nintendo City's ground fountain.

There were at least thirty water spouts built in the ground of this area across the street from where Peach and Roy standing. At the right moment, all of these spouts would eject water as thought they were thousands of geysers shooting up in the air. The water was colder compared to geysers. The water ground fountain had bright street lights on the sides of the area, shining upon the shooting water. At the right time, the water would glisten like thousands of diamonds shooting up in the air.

"Let's go there!" Peach said excitedly, taking Roy's arm and dragging him to a cross walk.

"WAH!" Roy said, confused to see the Princess full of energy.

"Wow!" She said as they arrived at the spot. She grinned and faced him. "It's so cool! I've gotta remember this location so that I can come here often and use it as my inspiration source to design clothes!"

She happily seated herself down on a near by stone bench, licking her ice cream cone. Roy's eyes focused on the cute Princess as she watched the glorious sight in front of them. This was the Peach that he liked. He was quite aware of the depressed mask she had on. Finally, she had taken it off to reveal what was really there: a beautiful, young, happy lady. He seated himself down as well, not saying anything. It was one of those moments in which no words should be exchanged, but the silence of two lovers both gazing at the wonderful sight. He smiled at the sight as well, perfectly content with life at last.

_**RING A DING DING!**_

"Hn? What was that?" Peach said, looking at Roy. Roy could feel something vibrating in the pockets of his pants.

"Oh! Sorry! I left my cellphone on. Hold on a minute," he responded as he held out his ice cream cone. "Here, could you hold this?"

Taking Roy's ice cream cone, the Master Lord clumsily fiddled around his pockets of his suit until he found the silver device. He opened the phone and pressed a button.

"Hello?" He answered.

Peach half smiled at the boy. He left his cell on... was he really serious about dating her if he had his cell on?

"What do you mean I can't do it tomorrow, Dad? ... Alright, I got it! It's "Father"! I'm sorry. The modern day city language is rubbing off on me! But I'm busy right now. I'm on a date... What? No! I mean a DATE DATE, Father! What other "date" is there? Anyway, I gotta go. I don't want to keep Peach waiting," Roy said as he closed the phone shut. He shoved the phone back in his right, pants pocket and faced Princess Peach again.

"Alright, sorry about that," he said nervously, taking back his cone from Peach's hand.

_**RING A DING DING!**_

"Uh... Can you give me another moment? This might be important..." Roy started to say. The Princess smiled and nodded. He gave her back his ice cream cone and picked up his phone again. "Hello? ... MARTH!!"

Peach jumped at the sound of the Prince's name.

"... What the hell, man? Say what? ... You just finished a research session with Samus? ... Yeah? So what? Dude, I'm with a date with Peach right now. ... No, dude, I could care less about how your study session with Samus went. ... Okay, FINE! It's a _research_ session! Who gives a crap? ... I don't care if you do, Marth, but like I said, I'm BUSY." The redhead angrily shouted in the phone. Peach sighed, slightly upset to see her date already distracted with other people.

"... NO! I do NOT plan to have sex with her tonight!" Roy exclaimed, madly flushing as he stood up from sitting. The blonde giggled a little bit at the blushing redhead. He looked adorable when red matched his hair and cheeks.

"Stop teasing me about her! If you wanna talk to someone, call Link! He'll listen to you! I-I-I gotta go!" He abruptly clicked the phone shut. He faced Peach once again.

"Sorry about that," he said meekly.

"It's alright," she lied, forcing another smile.

"Okay, alright. I'll have my ice cream now-"

_**RING A DING DING!**_

"... Uhhhh... This might be important as well," he said, shifting his attention away from her and picking up his phone. "Hello!?"

Peach rolled her eyes. This was getting frustrating. Not to mention, it was wicked rude of him to do this in front of her.

"Link!? Yeah, what's wrong, man?" The redhead asked, concerned. "... Oh. Marth called? Well, that's because I _told_ him to call you. He was bugging me from my date. ... Why am I dating a freak like her!? She's not a freak! What the hell are you talking about? ... Dude, maybe you might not like her, but I do. Anyway, look I gotta go." He hung up the phone once again. He faced Peach again with an apologetic look.

"Okay, I apologize for that as well, but-..."

_**RING A DING DING!**_

"Uh, excuse me-" Roy began to say as he took out his cell phone, but Peach quickly snatched it from his hands. She didn't care at the moment that Prince Marth of Altea was calling him right now. She didn't give two cents. She was fed up with this stupid shit. She pressed the "Send Busy Tone" button and pressed the power button off.

"Enough," she demanded, handing back Roy's cell phone.

"... Uhhh... Thanks, I guess," he replied nervously.

The sound of silence slowly came between the two of them as they both sat quietly eating their ice cream.

"... So you even have a cell phone?" Peach coldly inquired, breaking the silence.

"Uh, yeah. I do. My dad gets worried when I stay out too long in Nintendo City, so he always calls me to make sure when I'm coming back home. He also wants to make sure that I come home before the portal to my world closes," he said. "It's the same deal with Marth and Link. Except, Link just uses his cell to contact us for emergencies or schoolwork rather than chatting."

"Mmm... I see," she replied.

Another silence crept back between the two. Feeling the need to break the silence, Roy stood up.

"You know, this reminds me of Marth back when he was younger for some reason," he said, stepping in front of where Peach was sitting.

"Yeah? How so?" She said, not looking at him. She focused her attention at her ice cream cone, licking it. She was still bitter about what Roy did earlier.

"I don't know. I remember a few years ago, he got a couple of pet frogs from a fair and do you know what he named them?" Peach shook her head. "He named them Beula and Billy Bob! However, since he couldn't spell at the time, he wrote the frog's name as "Bue-luh". He was devastated once he discovered that Beula was actually a guy instead of a girl and she couldn't have baby frogs with Billy Bob. He still attempted to have those frogs fall in love with each other and create the first gay frog couple."

Peach almost choked on her ice cream at that point.

"Hn? What, Peach?"

"Mmmmmhahahahahaa... Hahahahahaha! That's sooo silly!" She said, laughing. "Trying to make frogs gay? That's just so stupid! What guy would do that?"

Roy smiled. She laughed. He liked it when he heard her laugh; it was cute.

"Yeah," he said. "Marth is the type of person who'd attempt to make frogs gay."

Chuckling a little bit, Peach's laughter soon died back down. The silence was back again. Noticing the position Roy Flores was in, she decided she'd take advantage of that. A devilish idea struck Peach's mind; she would get her payback.

"Hey, Roy, move back a little bit."

"... Okay?" He said, taking a step back.

"No no no... Move back MORE," she said, smirking.

He took another few steps back. He blinked in confusion. What on earth was she telling him to do?

"Peach, what is the meaning of thi-"

_**FOOSH!**_

A liquid climbed all over his clothes and skin. Water had come in contact with Roy's whole body. Somehow, Peach got Roy to stand over one of the ground fountain spouts to have water drench him. He stood there, miserably cold, and still trying to comprehend what just happened.

"Hahahahaha!!" She cackled.

"..."

"You're wet! Wasn't that fun?" Peach inquired as she crossed her legs. She rested her hand on the stone bench and shifted her body weight to the side. Roy shook off some excess water and glared at the Princess.

"... No! Peach! You got me all wet! This isn't funny! I wore this expensive suit just for our date! It's made out of silk!" He replied angrily.

She gave him a fake sympathetic face. "Hmmm... Awh, too bad, Roysie-boysie. I guess this just shows that you shouldn't be so flashy when it comes to dates. You don't need to impress me, you know," she said before taking another lick of her ice cream cone.

Roy said nothing more of the excess water was dripping from his body (and even from his ice cream cone).

"... Thanks a lot, Peach. Not only did you get me wet, but also my ice cream as well! I paid for this!"

"No problem, Roy. It's a pleasure to always get payback."

"That was payback!?"

"Of course. I hate it when guys can't shut off their cell phones on dates. It's just rude and disrespectful," she said, glancing at her perfectly non-water-drenched ice cream cone. She stood up from the bench and walked towards the Master Lord.

"I hope you remember that lesson well," she told as she approached him. She stared directly into his eyes with confidence.

"Oh, I will," he said. A smirk crossed his face at that point, and he slyly said: "But if I'm wet... I'm afraid, Princess, that you'll have to get wet with me!"

He grabbed her by her waist and she shrieked. She knew what he was doing. At the right moment, more water soaked on both of them. The liquid doused on their skin, biting them.

"ROY! How DARE you! You got me wet as well!" She screamed, breaking free from Roy's grasp. Drenched from all of the water, she added, "And you ruined my ice cream as well!"

"Hey, all is fair in love and war, now isn't it?" He sing songed with a wink.

"I hate you," she said, crossing her arms.

"No, you don't. If you did, then why are you here with me on a date?"

"Shut up," she snapped.

"Wipe that frown off your face..."

"Why?" She demanded. She narrowed her eyes at the redhead.

"Because I know just the thing that can make you feel better!" He happily said. He dropped his ice cream, and began to tickle her sides.

"Ah! Roy! Stop that!" She said, letting the ice cream cone escape from her fingers as well.

"Oh, come on! You know you love it!"

"Quit it!"

"Nope!" He replied.

"Argh! Get away from me, Roy!" She squealed, beginning to run away from Roy and through the fountain center. Deserting him, Roy only smirked.

"And leave my date all alone with harmful predators? No way!" He declared as he began to chase after her.

"You can't catch me, Roy!" she exclaimed joyfully, running right past another shooting water jet.

Water continued to shoot up between the two, slowly drenching them more and more. They were laughing, comfortable with this moment of their lives. They were both having fun and caring less about what was going on at the moment. For both of them, they it seemed as if this moment could last forever in their minds. Time had paused, letting them enjoy these memorable minutes. The two sprinted across the ground water fountain until they reached the center.

"Ahah," she murmured as she sheepishly looked at Roy's face.

The Pheraen grinned at her. He brushed some of Peach's soaked locks of hair from her eyes with his hand. Slowly, his face moved towards her and his lips brushed against hers. Even though they were both cold and wet from the water ground fountain, Peach could swear that she felt some warmth in the Master Lord's lips. They were soft, and yet they were sweet tasting as well. When he finally lifted his head from hers, he smiled. She shyly smiled back at him as well, shifting her eyes down to her feet. He took a hand, lifted Peach's chin up, and brought her closer to him. He was going to kiss her again until he noticed a bright blue and purple mark on her cheek.

"Peach, what happened to your cheek?" He asked, staring speechlessly at the mark.

"Eh?" She said. She realized what was happening. Nervously, she gathered up her handbag hanging from her right arm. Fumbling through her bag, she took out her compact mirror. That bright blue and purple mark was still there on her right cheek. The cover up must have washed off from the two playing in the fountain. Her eyes widened with shock.

"Peach?"

"It's nothing!" She quickly replied, covering up her bruise with her hand. The bruise still stung sharply.

"Is that so? That bruise looks pretty big..."

"I said it was nothing, Roy! Please, don't worry about something like this!" She said forcefully, looking back at Roy. His face was hurt; she knew he meant well.

"Ah!" She began to say, but she quickly closed her mouth. Feeling the stinging of the bruise, she didn't forget what Rachel Livingston said to her. She couldn't forget a single word. Looking away from the redhead, she asked, "... Roy, why do you want to date me?"

The redhead blinked at her a few times before looking at her. "... What do you mean by that?"

"Why me? That's what I want to know. You could've gone out with any girl in our school... A lot of girls in our school seem to fancy you quite a bit... But you picked me to date tonight. Why?" She inquired sadly. She really wanted to know what made her so "special" to him.

"All of the other girls at our school are... prettier, more confident, and also smarter than me. You should find someone who is better than me."

"You idiot! Why do you think I wanted to date you?" He questioned, seizing her shoulders. He looked at her straight in the eye with a determined look upon his face. "I chose to date you because..."

Crap, he didn't know what to say. As if a magic spell had hexed him, he couldn't say the reasons why he wanted to date Peach. He knew that he had plenty of reasons, but he couldn't think up a single reason at that time. His brain froze on him and now he was speechless.

"Yes? Why do you want to date me?" She asked, tilting her head to the side

"It's uh-... it's because you're hot!" He replied quickly.

It was definitely one of his weak reasons because the Princess Peach blinked at him a few times.

"It's because I'm hot?" She repeated, disbelieved at Roy's words.

"Uhhh... Well, there are a few more..." Roy muttered nervously.

"I see now," Peach said, casting her eyes back down at her feet. "You _asshole_!"

A new pain and crimson imprint were found on Roy's face.

"... What?! Peach! What was that for?" The swordsman asked, realizing what just happened. He placed a hand over his cheek before facing back at the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom.

"What do you think it was for, you idiot! You only want to date me because I'm hot? Well, I'm sorry, _Flores_, but if you want to date me... You better have more reasons to date me than just the fact that I'm hot!" She screamed. She panted a few times, her anger slowly cooling off. "I... I may look weak, listless, shy, and unconfident... But I know... That I should _never ever _waste my time with scumbags who just want me as their toy!"

She turned on her heel and bolted. She hated being lied and deceived to. It was one of the most disgusting things in the world. And yet, Roy Flores, a guy who she thought she could trust, had lied to her.

"Peach! Peach!! PEACH!" Roy called after her.

She ignored him. She continued to run away from that fool. His voice droned out, and the pounding of heels against the pavement was the only thing she could hear. She didn't know how far she was ran, but she was finally free from that jerkface's clutches. She stopped once she knew she was far from him. The Princess took the opportunity to slowly catch her breath, panting heavily from the distance she ran. Her heart was hammering against her chest. Calming herself down, she slowly pulled her out cell and dialed a number.

"Hello, Toad? Yeah. My date with Roy Flores ended. Please pick up as soon as possible... Where am I? I'm at..." She cautiously looked around for nearby street signs. "I'm at 17th Street near a store called: "Violet". Please pick me up as soon as possible."

She shut her phone as she leaned her body against the store's brick wall. Her heart was still ramming against her chest after everything that happened. What was wrong with her? For some reason, her head felt very dizzy and her face was completely flushed.

She couldn't have fell for Roy Flores. He was that all around, perfect over achiever. He was a side-kick-like guy, who trailed around Marth Lowell's and Link Wright's shadows like a loyal minion. She couldn't understand why she became loose around that boy. It was as if all of last year's pains, scars, and bruises had gone away. There was some sort of connection between them, and she couldn't explain why she felt more relaxed around him. He was able to just turn her world upside down as if it was nothing. And whenever he smiled at her, she always found him either blushing, looking away from him, or just smiling back as well. As much as she wanted to believe that he befriended, cared, and liked her, the Princess knew that she should forget about it. She shouldn't have gotten such silly, childish fantasies in her head.

Finally alone, tears had started to prick from Peach's eyes. Her eyes were filled with salt water and she didn't want to cry now. She had vowed not to cry in public. Yet her heart was aching so much that she didn't care now. Besides, there was no one around the street she was in. She sobbed softly, trying to comfort herself from all the pain inside. Even after when Toad had picked her up, the Princess Peach had cried all night in solitude.

* * *

_A/N:_

_(1) In Japan, it's considered rude to tip a person for his/her job. The Japanese consider it as an insult because it basically means that they can't do their job right a customer is giving them money as opposed to their manager. Please be aware that I have NEVER been to Japan. So I don't know for sure if that's how a Japanese waiter would react. This is what I've heard from my unreliable brother and on the Internet._

_I apologize for the Biology scene._ _It's been two years since I've taken Biology and I can't find all of my old Biology worksheet papers... T.T I think I've thrown them all out! D: _

_I apologize for this whole chapter! I'm sorry if it sucks! I tried my best, but for some reason... I don't think it came out right. I'll maybe try to fix it up later! I've been through a lot of stuff when writing. A quick shout out to ROYAL KENYA (RK/MUMMY)!! Thank you so much for allowing me to use the names: "Beula" and "Billy Bob" to add somewhat humor to the scene. I'm sorry, but I find those names to be funny, and I'm sorry if you guys didn't laugh like I did when I heard them. And I wish that my Mummy would update her lovely, baby fan fic: __My Smile Is Yours__!! Pleeeeeeaaaaaaaaaasssssssssssseeee!! I wanna see what's next, RK!! D:_

_Erm, I know that some of you really want me to update as soon as possible, but please... understand that I have a life as well. I won't be able to update a lot this year since school is coming around the corner on August 27th. Also, this is my "critical" year as my mother says. So I'll be extremely busy in the fall, desperately trying to meet other people's expectations._

_Alright, if you love me and want to inspire me to write more... Leave me a review, please!_

_-BKP_

* * *


	17. Will

**Will**

A limp figure stopped. The sweating body of Zelda Harkinian could not take it anymore. She collapsed on the ground, willing to stay there until the sun had set. Every muscle inside of her felt as though it was a ten thousand weight. It burned, stung, and felt torn deep in her flesh. Tears, sweat, and a small trickle of blood ran down the Princess' arms, dripping down to the ground. Her heart was a jackhammer, pounding out of control. She panted heavily, and slowly rose her head up. Everything was blurry from the tears, but as soon as it cleared up the person standing in front of her was the same.

"Try again, Zelda," A deep voice commanded. "You can barely hit me with a blow. How do you expect to be fit for the Tournament?"

"... Please... Impa... One five minute break," she rasped.

The grey haired woman crossed her arms, quirked an eyebrow, and half smirked.

"Oh? You want me to go easy on you, Zelda? I'm afraid I can't do it. You said yourself that you wanted to be taken seriously for this Tournament," Impa stated wryly.

"Screw what I said! I need a water break!" The future Hylian Queen exclaimed, slowly bringing her body together from the ground. Every muscle and limb felt delicate and broken. She was too weak. Tipping over to her side, she found herself once again on the cold, hard ground.

"No can do. And wash your mouth, dear. Your mother would be ashamed of you to hear such foul language coming out of a lady's mouth. Now get up. We have more sparring to do."

"Please... enough," the Princess begged once again; everything was becoming blurry again. The tendons of body felt as if they were over stretched and torn.

Impa sighed heavily. "Zelda... You got yourself into this, and you said you'd stick with it. So now, will you fight or not?!" Impa demanded.

"But enough is enough! Please, Impa! I'm begging you! I feel as if the Three Holy Goddesses will take my body up to the Sacred Realm if I don't get some rest!"

"No "but"s, Zelda! As I said, you promised to take responsibility for that. This is the price you pay when you sign up for something like the Super Smash Brothers Tournament! I warned you before, but you didn't listen to me. Now come at me again!" The faithful nursemaid commanded.

Slowly catching her breath, the young Hylian proceeded to stand up. Focusing her determined eyes on her nursemaid, she somehow found the inner strength to project her body upright. And that's when she felt it. She felt as if life was slowly restoring back to her. All of a sudden, her body cooled and the sweat disappeared. The pain evaporated from her arms and legs. The fatigue of her mind was no longer there. However, this inner strength did not come where her heart was. It came from her right hand.

"Come," the Sheikah taunted, twisting her mouth into a wicked smile.

The Princess said nothing, but her eyesight sharply focused on her nursemaid. With poise and muscles tensed, she bolted. She bolted towards her nursemaid as though she was a bull on a rampage. Projecting a yell, she began to swipe a few blows at the old Sheikah to her left. The power inside of her grew. She felt it. She felt this bizarre, golden power flourishing inside of her. A triangular mark burned on her right hand. She felt as if she was becoming one of the Goddesses, invincible and pure. More. More power. With a concentrated punch, she was able to make a blow at her trainer's face.

Impa, on the other hand, attempted to block a few blows coming towards her. Finding an opening, she attempted to hit Zelda; however, the rookie of fighting dodged to her left like a wild cat. The nursemaid's brain fumbled through ideas for an attack. She didn't understand how Zelda became stronger in such a short period of time. Obviously, Zelda couldn't have caught on the advanced techniques the Sheikah used to fight. Something else was making her stronger...

_'There!'_

_**SLAM!**_

Impa's fist came in contact with her abdomen, stunning the Princess.

"Oof!"

Her body collapsed to the ground. The blond woman panted heavily at at the amount of energy she had just used. For some reason, a new sort of fatigue had come across her body. She felt even more tired than she did a few seconds ago. Her mind was air-headed, blank. She closed her eyes and slowly opened them again. She was still in the same place. She felt her eyelids slowly drooping down again.

Impa tugged at the right side of her mouth. Glancing at the Princess's right hand, there was the familiar, branded, golden mark on the back of her hand. The Triforce of Wisdom. The Hylian guard's mouth opened slightly. It couldn't be. Was it _her_ time now? The Triforce had chosen its Master again?

Brushing the thought aside, the nursemaid approached the motionless Zelda. Steadily, she nudged the Princess with the back of her hand, "Oy."

".... Haaarrrrrgggggggghhh....." The girl replied.

"... Zelda, get up."

".................................... No...."

"Get up."

"... I feel as if I'm on the brink of life and death," the voice answered.

".... Alright, if you say so," Impa told her while placing her hand ontop of the blond's forehead. She frowned. Slowly rising up, her eyes detected how the Hylian suddenly became so pale. "Hmmm.... You there! Girl! Fetch the Princess some water, bread, cheese, and butter! Her body is weak!"

"Yes, milady," a servant girl obediently curtsied and scurried away within seconds.

Still studying the golden mark of the Triforce, Impa stroked the girl's hand tenderly. "Don't worry, Zelda... It'll be alright. You used up a lot of energy today."

"Here, milady," the same servant girl said, presenting a tray of bread and a jug of water.

"Thank you. Set it down here on the ground. Zelda, eat. Now."

"................ Let me sleep."

"No. Eat. Now. The reason why you have no strength to get up is because you haven't eaten in a few hours. If you don't eat, you'll never be fit for the Tournament."

Grabbing the nearby tray, the nursemaid took a small loaf of bread and presented it towards the girl's mouth. "Eat."

Weak, azure eyes gazed into the older woman's. Her eyes shifted away as her hand slowly approached the loaf of bread from her Impa's and began to eat. With each bite, her body miraculously started to feel more alive.

"Milady Impa! Milady Impa!" a servant girl entered, breathless.

"What is it?"

"I have some news for Ms. Zelda! She's received a letter from The Super Smash Brothers Association. It's a letter about her application to the Tourna-"

_**SNATCH!**_

The servant girl blinked a few times. The letter in her left hand had disappeared. In less than five seconds, the Princess herself had stolen the paper from the poor girl's hands and was reading them.

"Thank you. You may go now," Zelda quickly said, waving a hand to send the girl away. She eagerly looked at Impa and grinned. With an excited look, she tore the top of the envelop off.

"Dear Miss Zelda Harkinian," she began to read, "On behalf of the association, we thank you for applying for The Annual Super Smash Brothers Tournament. This year's selection has been extremely hard to narrow down fourteen new smashers for this year's tournament."

Zelda stopped reading. Her mind was racing, and her heartbeat wasn't slowing down. She must have gotten in, right? She felt her hands tremble as she began to read more.

"Fortunately, we have decided that you will participate in this year's Tournament. Please do not underestimate your abilities and neither from your enemies or allies. In the next eleven days, it is necessary that you fill out the enclosed medical forms. We must know of any conditions that you have and if it'll affect your smashing within the Tournament. In the meantime, congratulations! You're now officially a smasher of The Super Smash Brothers Tournament!"

She didn't need to bother reading the rest of the closing statements. Her eyes widened and her heart stopped beating.

"Zelda... Are you alright?"

"... AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!" She squealed.

"Zelda! Be quiet! Your father is taking a nap! And you know it isn't-... Oof!"

The nursemaid found that the body of the Princess had hurled itself against her, hugging her tenderly.

"Impa! I'm so happy! I'm a smasher! Can you believe it?! I'm going to beat that Link Wright! I'm going to show him that he's not the king of the world!" She shouted, flashing her bright, white teeth at her nursemaid.

"Alright, I got it... Zel...daa...... Zel... daaa.... You... are... crushing... me... It's... hard... to breathe..." The old woman said as the Princess let go of her grasp. Impa coughed and gasped. "I seriously thought you were going to kill me! You should be careful with your new muscles, Zelda!"

Zelda still smiled sweetly. "Impa, I thought you were stronger than I was! How could I possibly crush you?"

The nursemaid said nothing. Instead, she still found herself amazed that Zelda had possessed such strength. The woman's ribs felt as if they were going to be shattered. The Triforce still gleamed on the top of Zelda's right hand while the Princess' face was beaming.

_'The Triforce is truly a wonderous thing. It can easily give its holder strength when a person's will is vigorous. It seems as if Zelda's strength can be given depending on her emotions. She... she's not aware of this threatening power, now is she? … Within time, I trust that she'll figure everything out. I know she will. For now, I should keep my mouth shut about it.'_

Impa gave Zelda a smile as she placed a hand over the young girl.

"Zelda, dear. You have to remember that I'm getting older. My body was not as it used to be fifteen years ago. My bones have stopped growing unlike yours. Which reminds me, you need more calcium in your body. If you really want to be fit for the Tournament, you _must _drink milk!"

"What? No way! I don't want to drink milk!" The Princess retorted stubbornly.

"Why do you mean? Zelda, milk is very good for your body."

"I don't want to drink milk because when I think of milk, I think of Wright. I don't want to be reminded of that dreadful Hylian! He drinks GALLONS of milk at school! I swear, I've never seen a person drink so much milk at my school."

"Well, that's probably why he's so strong for the Tournament. He drinks _milk_ because he's smart enough to know that it makes his bones really solid."

".... I still don't think I should drink milk," Zelda said stubbornly.

Impa sighed. In a flash, the Princess was yelping in pain. She finally understood what her nursemaid was saying and agreed to her terms.

* * *

"So, she twisted your arm?" Samus asked as she wrapped a lock of her hair around her finger. The blond curiously stared back at the princess. The first bell had rang five minutes ago, signaling that homeroom would start in half an hour. Monday was here. In some ways, Zelda was relieved to see Samus, but she dreaded how the rest of the day would turn out.

The Hylian nodded. "She twisted my arm, and said, 'Look, you're yowling. Does it hurt? Well, good. It shows that your bones are also calling out for help. They want _milk_, Zelda. You need it because your skeletal system is weak.'"

".... That's harsh," the bounty hunter said as her left hand rummaged around in her pant pockets.

"I know! Isn't it mean, though? She didn't need to go that far to make me drink milk! Goddesses."

"Well, I don't know. I mean, I admit... drinking more milk couldn't hurt you, girl. I found that if I also drink more milk, I feel stronger," Samus commented as the other blond gave her an irritated look. "... Umm... Do you want some gum?"

"No thank you, Samus. But can't you just agree with me on this little thing? I'm still pissed that she had to do that thing."

"Sorry, but hah. Your nursemaid did say that she wouldn't be easy with you on training sessions. But oh man, I'm so happy that you're in Zelda! We can do team battles now! We can just gang up on those dopes Lowell and Wright!" Tossing a stick of gum in her mouth, she crumpled up the wrapper and grinned.

"Haha! I know! It'll be sick," Zelda said before pausing. "But anyway. Crap. I didn't finish the Bio research worksheet. Thank the Goddesses that homeroom doesn't start until another half hour."

"Yeah, I know. I'm glad you could come to school early today. You seriously didn't finish that yet? Hah. Lowell and I finished that on Saturday. It was Hell, let me tell you that," Samus lied, half-smiling. Why did she keep lying about this? Shrugging it off, she continued to say, "Here, let me help you."

"Thanks, Samus. I was supposed to work with Wright a while ago, but damn it. He's an idiot. He didn't talk about meeting up before the weekend. He just told me to do it myself."

"Mmmhmm... Right. Okay, let's start with the first question. Don't worry, I actually don't think you need to research any of this shit. You can basically reason your way through each one."

"Alright, cool. But umm... Hmmm," the blond princess said as she scanned the worksheet, "I'm curious... what else did you do over the weekend?"

Zelda picked up her pen and began to write while Samus scoffed. "Hah. Nothing that important. I just worked and that was it... By the way," Samus began to say as she swirled herself around to face someone else. "Peach, how did your date with Roy Flores go?"

The other princess had been silent like she normally had throughout the whole conversation. Samus would expect that the anxious Peach would've looked at her then and given her a frightened look. Instead, she just stared off into space, didn't face her, and wore a half-tugged smile.

"I don't want to talk about it," Peach said a non-frightened voice. Her voice was deeper than normal.

"... Peach. Um, did it go well? Because you don't seem so..."

"So what?" Peach demanded as she angrily faced Samus.

"Ummm... So... scared of everything."

"Oh, shut up, Samus. I'm not in a good mood right now. Just because I was scared of everything earlier doesn't mean that I can't talk. I want some alone time," Peach snapped.

At the same time, both Zelda and Samus had their faces stunned in shock, baffled at what the other Princess was saying. Their brains still were trying to comprehend everything that just happened.

"Peach," Zelda said. "... Are you sure that you don't want to talk about it?"

The Mushroom Kingdom princess darted her eyes at the two. "Of course. It's none of your concern."

"... Okay, we'll leave you be, Peach."

Their heads turned, and the corners of Peach's mouth only pulled downwards. She should've told them everything. She should've told them about how Roy used her. He only wanted to get in her pants. It was obvious. Or maybe it wasn't. She didn't care that much about her life. She should've told them about how she had the potential to do well in school but was scared shitless of her own shadow. She should've told them her past with Caitlin, Megan, and Rachel.

Why was she always so hesitant to tell them all of these things? Oh right. She knew. People can be so superficial. Betrayal is always a bitch. She can't open up so easily to people anymore. She gave them a shard of her heart – she wanted them to understand. Instead, they abused this power they have over her and destroyed her. Why? All for social gain.

That's what Peach knew about humans. She watched her two "best friends" (She wasn't keen on calling them best friends just yet) laugh merrily. How could they be carefree and young at this age? Life wouldn't be easy for long.

"So, Samus, do you have a soccer game against Rustenburg this Friday?" The Hylian girl asked.

"Hn? Yeah, I do. I mean they've been undefeatable for about five years now. But I'm confident in my abilities." She declared with a smirk.

"You mean the team's ability, right?"

"Eh, I guess. But I really don't know about the guys since Low-"

"Samus Aran!"

The two golden heads titled upwards. Their homeroom teacher, Mr. Jones, peered over them with his arms crossed over his chest. He frowned at the girl wit emerald eyes.

"Why are you wearing the male's uniform pants to school? You're a girl! You're supposed to be wearing a skirt! This is unacceptable!" The homeroom teacher shouted. "It's the school rule for girls to wear skirts and guys to wear pants!"

"Well, Mr. Jones, I-um... I lost my skirt. And when I tried to find it, I just figured it'd be easier if I took some spare guy's pants. Besides, Falco Lombardi didn't seem to mind to give me his pair since he somehow had an extra..."

"Bull you-know-what! How could you lose your uniform skirt after the first day of school? That's impossible!"

"Uh, you wouldn't know for sure, Mr. Jones. I do all of my laundry at a laundromat. I think I lost it there, but I'm not sure..."

"You _think_?! You don't know that for sure? If that is the case, then buy a new skirt from the school! As I said, you're not supposed to be wearing boys' clothes! What will people think of you? That you want to be a boy not a girl? Are you disregarding your own gender? The principal has addressed this issue to you before, and if you don't change your pants to a skirt, I swear I'll-"

"Mr. Jones! I need help with my English paper right now!" A girl intervened.

"... Great. I'll talk to you later about this, Aran," Mr. Jones sneered.

Samus rolled her eyes as she faced Zelda.

"What in the Sacred Realm is that all about?"

"... I hate wearing skirts; I don't wear them. There's no way I'm buying another skirt from the school. Uh-uh. Just... NO. The school is already rich anyway."

"Did you seriously lose your skirt?" Zelda inquired.

"Fuck no. I just lied about that because I didn't want Mr. Jones to get all upset about it. I swear, he never gets anal about anything except about this issue. You know, the Master Hand, the principal, almost gave me a three hour detention. I didn't follow the rules about school uniforms last year. So you know what I did? I just wore a skirt on the first day of school this year to shut him up. But eh, I guess they're still on my case about it."

"... What's wrong with wearing a skirt?"

"... It's freakin' uncomfortable. I don't want boys seeing my panties any time soon..."

Zelda quirked another eyebrow. "Right... You're paranoid."

"I quite agree. I also believe that skirts are the root of all femininity which I disagree with."

The Hylian princess rolled her eyes and grinned, "You realize you'll have to wear a dress someday, right? I'll make you."

Samus smirked before declaring, "Not unless I hide myself in my PowerSuit!"

Zelda laughed airily at her friend's little joke. "Oh hey, Samus. I forgot my library pass today, do you think you could check out some books for me?"

"Again, Zelda? Seriously, did you forget your wallet at home?"

"Sorry, sorry. I'll remember to check it out with my own student library card tomorrow."

"Girl, the last time you check out your books with my card, I almost had to pay all of the fines with my month's paycheck!" Samus exclaimed. "Argh! Do something about it!"

"I'll pay you back as soon as I get the chance, okay? Don't you get a lot of money from work though?" Zelda inquired as she gathered all of her belongings together before standing up.

"Hah, working at a restaurant is shitty. I don't get tips," Samus replied as she also stood up. The more outgoing blonds awkwardly took a look at the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom. The sitting blond was still touchy with her head resting on her left hand with her arm propped upwards. They both nervously looked at each other.

"Well... Bye, Peach?" The bounty huntress said nervously. Peach coolly faced her friend.

"Bye, Samus," she said right before the other two blonds exited the classroom.

* * *

Roy Flores' eyes scanned the halls as he curled his lips inwards. He had searched everywhere, and he was growing desperate. Dark circles framed the bottom portion of his eyes since that horrible weekend. The copper haired swordsman's body temperate risen. For the slightest moment, swordsman could hear nothing but his very own cardiac cycle rapidly contracting and relaxing. His hands began to tremble with fear. He closed his eyes and sucked in some air. He held his breath for thirty seconds before reopening his eyes and letting it all out.

It was when he stepped inside of Mr. Jones' homeroom class, he spotted what he had been looking for: Peach Toadstool. His eyes darted at her with confidence. In his mind, he would become a solid, steel wall. Ever since the disastrous date on Saturday night, Roy vowed to himself that he must apologize to Peach. He still wasn't sure what he did wrong, but he wanted to at least prove to Peach that he had no ill intentions. He knew what he wanted to say, but he didn't know how to say it. Should he give her a polite apology? Or should he just say he was sorry? He didn't know. Women were a complex being that he fathomed for one second, but would catch him off guard during the next. Swallowing a bit of saliva, he approached the shy girl.

"Hey Peach," he said.

She stared out in space; but when he spoke to her, the light blue eyes faced towards him. They stunned Roy's body into place, glaring at him. He didn't need to have her say what she was feeling; he knew it. She was pissed.

"... Um. I-uh. I didn't mean what I said on Saturday night. I didn't want to go out with you just because you were hot. I'll admit that I think you're attractive, but I couldn't say what I wanted to that night. Anyway, I'm just really sorry about what went on between you and me. I think what went on between us was a misunderstanding..." Roy finished as his cheeks flushed crimson.

Peach's mouth quirked upwards, but it quickly fell back into its original place. Misunderstanding? What was he implying by that? Did she "misunderstand" their date? It didn't matter anymore. Peach was a girl who knew what to think and wouldn't easily change her ways.

"I'll forgive you, Roy," she began to say in another normal tone. Just as Roy's face brightened up, she quickly added, "But I will never date you again. You are more than welcome to hang out with me as a friend, but nothing more than that. I don't want to date you."

This was worse than what he expected. If Roy's body was made of glass, then each word would've been a needle driving into every part of his body. His body would shatter. But not only his body, but his spirit as well. Even the flaming red hair of the swordsman grew dimmer. Though, he had no choice.

With another swallow of his own saliva, he projected, "Alright. We'll stay as friends."

If this was her boundaries, he had no choice to accept it. He forcefully smiled. He knew she said no to his advances. Even when you unwillingly accept something, there's still a chance of getting what you want. Roy perfectly understood this. He knew that he'd change her someday. Someday, he'd reignite the chemistry between. It was going to be Hell, but he had already prepared himself for the worst. And he knew what the worst was already...

* * *

"So do you think you can come to the soccer game this Friday?" The girl with green eyes asked.

"I think so... My dad shouldn't have a problem with it," Zelda pondered as she drummed her fingers on the table.

"Great! I'm really excited for this. Rustenburg should prepared to get OWNED."

"Abran los libros a página ciento diez," a petite woman recited as she hastily made her way to the front of the room.

Translation: Open your books to page one hundred and ten.

"Oh shit, Ms. Brown's here," Samus muttered as she pulled her book close to her and flipped open to the destined page. From the way the young woman bustled into the classroom, the class could tell that their Spanish teacher was in a bad mood. It was understandable though. Mondays were always the worst.

"Aw, crap. Did we have any homework over the weekend?" Zelda questioned.

"Zelda! Presta atención! Lea y conteste la primera pregunta!" The small woman fiercely commanded.

Translation: Zelda! Pay attention! Read and answer the first question! Zelda nervously faced Samus. The other blond shook her head no, notifying her that there was no homework. The Hylian exhaled a sigh of relief.

"Zelda! Lea!"

"Si, Señorita!" Zelda spoke back quickly as she faced the petite lady. She noticed the anxious, brown eyes directed at her while she took a closer look at her Spanish textbook. In her wannabe Spanish accent, she recited: "Antonio, ¿por qué conduce tu abuelita tan lentamente? Ummm... Porque quiere ser cuidadosa....?"

"Muy bien, Zelda," Ms. Brown said before moving on to the next question.

"Whew," Zelda whispered to Samus as another student answered loudly from his seat. "That was close."

"Mmm, you're telling me. I thought Ms. Brown would've chopped off your head if you didn't get that right."

"I know. So, tell me more about what happens now that I'm a smasher," Zelda urged.

"Well, from what I remember... I just got accepted and that was it. Though, that was when the Super Smash Brothers didn't have that much funding for the tournament. We didn't expect that the tournament would've been such a big hit. However, they've really tightened the system within the past few years. Now, they're more picky about who competes and what not," Samus explained as she tried to look focused on Ms. Brown's lecture. Whatever she was babbling in Spanish, she didn't understand it at all. In fact, it seemed as though nobody in class did as well. Nobody was ever awake during third period on a Monday.

"What do you mean by "more picky" though?" The princess inquired slowly as she mimicked Samus' actions. They both didn't face each other. They kept their eyes locked on their Spanish teacher while exchanging words.

"They've included a fighting round against current smashers. Before, you were just interviewed about what you could do and what you couldn't. You also had to show your fighting skills as though you were auditioning for cheerleading. It was lame. Completely lame. But now, they want you to fight against someone. You could fight against me. Or you could fight against Falco or Fox. Who knows? It's random."

"Do I have to defeat you?"

"No, we don't expect you to be THAT good. The other thing good about being in the Tournament is that we help you improve on your fighting skills," Samus replied. "Though, you have to beat up your opponent to a certain percentage. I think it's... up to a hundred.... Wait... Yeah, it is. So you basically raise your opponent's percentage to a hundred."

"Samus and Zelda, quit it!" Ms. Brown snapped, shooting dagger-like glares that pierced the two in place.

Translation: Samus and Zelda, quit it before I stab you with my fist! The two girls voices hushed in fear.

"Talk to me more about this later, okay?" Zelda whispered as she averted her eyes back to the teacher. Samus nodded in agreement as her eyes followed Zelda's. The lecture continued on and on while the Hylian's eyes felt droopy. What more could her Spanish teacher say? Did she really need to talk so much? She felt as though she just wanted to shut her eyes and never wake up again from this dreaded place. At any moment she could feel herself losing consciousness with her body...

"Es tan importante que ustedes-"

_**DING! DING! DING!!!**_

The bell interrupted Ms. Brown as the young teacher rolled her eyes. Books shutting, backpacks shuffling, and the students chattering soon filled the classroom as the Spanish teacher removed her reading glasses from her face. With an irritated sigh, she said in English:

"Your homework for tonight consists of doing activities A through C on page one hundred eleven. I'll check it first thing tomorrow. ¡Adios!"

The students all stood up, eager to escape the lingerings of the Spanish language. Some of them grinned while others mumbled about their next class. Zelda's body felt more alive after hearing the shrill of the bell. She raised herself from the seat and her eyes darted towards Samus once more.

"So... It's a home game on Friday night, right?"

"Yep! Home game on a Friday from noon to one." Samus replied with a nod and smile. Zelda returned her smile with one of her own.

"Alright! I'll be sure to be there. Okay, I gotta head to French now, Sam. Catch you later." The Hylian made her exit as her bounty huntress friend waved good-bye. Feeling more content and awake, the Princess had a burst of energy and happiness until she saw her all too familiar acquaintance: Link Wright.

Her face cringed. He was striding her way with one backpack strap slung around his right shoulder. All of the females lightly giggled as he prowled the hallway as though he was a male model on the runway. The female Hyrulean attempted to not roll her eyes. Attempted that is. The action was automatic whenever Link Wright was nearby.

When he came within five feet of her, he cleared his throat. "... So."

"So," Zelda mimicked as he glared and frowned at her.

"So, I recently got _this_ back," he told her as he held up a Biology worksheet. It was the same worksheet that Zelda worked on earlier today with Samus in the library. She noticed the seven out of ten score circled in red pen at the top of Link's worksheet. ".... Mrs. Pierce noticed we had different answers. She said that we both got the same score since we didn't work together over the weekend like we should've." He grumbled with his brow wrinkled.

Zelda put on a fake smile. "Well, that was your problem, not mine. It was your job to arrange something." She could tell he wasn't taking this nicely. He looked at her as though she had ten heads.

"Excuse me, Princess? _I'm_ supposed to arrange something? Why should I have to arrange something again? I'm not the group leader. You're supposed to do your share of taking the initiative and coming to find me about meeting up to work on this Biology project. I already had shit to do. I had to practice for my final game against Rutsenburg, practice for the Tournament, and I also have a Goddesses-damned life to take care of."

"Fine. The next worksheet for our Bio project is due on Tuesday. I say we do it on Monday. I'm not going to be available this weekend. We can do it right after school. But we can't do it at my castle because my father has important international affairs that day," the blond girl explained as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Okay, fine. We'll work at my place. I live in Kokiri Forest. We'll ride there."

Ride? Did he mean...?

"Yes, we'll ride some horses there. The school has stables out in the back."

… He had a horse?

"For Goddesses sake, yes, I have a horse. She's a noble girl. Better than you."

Did he just...

"And yes, I did just compare you to an animal. Get over yourself, Harkinian."

"....... I didn't say anything," Zelda said quietly.

Indeed, she never said a word to Link. Yet, it was as though he could read her mind with all of the questions she had about him. As he brushed his hair with his left hand, she observed this strange, golden triangular mark on the top. It glowed softly. The mark was a triangle made up of three gold ones with another clear one in the middle. Why did that mark look so familiar? It was as though she saw it before.... Didn't she even see that mark once on her right hand in the morning?

Yes, she remembered she woke up one night feeling a burning sensation on her right hand. She kept on rubbing it and with groggy eyes, she saw it glowing gold. She stared at it for five seconds before she realized it was wearing her down. She dozed back off the sleep once the burning stopped. When she woke up, there was no trace of a mark.

_'… Bizarre.'_ Zelda thought as her mind came back to where she was. She blinked a few times. The other Hylian was no where to be found. "Um... Wright?"

She looked left and right. There was no one to be found. The halls were empty and clear.

"... OH SHIT! That damn Wright!" Zelda screamed as she took a glance at her wristwatch. She was already five minutes late for class. "... Fuck!" With all of her energy, she bolted at full speed to class.

_'I'll get him back at the Tournament... I swear if it's the last thing I do.'_

_

* * *

_

"Fuckity fuckity fuuuuucccckk!!!!" A young boy groaned as he buried his face in both of his hands. "I'm gonna die today. I'm gonna die today... I'm gonna _fucking_ die TODAY!"

"Marth, what's wrong? And Marth, I will NOT tolerate that type of foul language out on the playing field today!" An older man replied. Marth gave him an "oh please" look before replying.

"Coach, do you really think that we'll be fine today against Rutsenburg? I mean... Aran. We have _Aran_ on the team," Marth mentioned as the blond girl down the bench line gritted her teeth.

"Don't forget that I can hear you down over here, pretty boy!" She snapped.

Marth put his left hand up in the air. "Whatever, Aran." As soon as Mr. Jackson had his head turned, the blond girl flashed the prince her middle finger.

A brisk, chilling air brushed by everyone's faces. It was a cold, autumn day, not ideal for a soccer match. It was only fifteen minutes before their final soccer game. They had come so far. Even though the players wore long sleeved shirts over their soccer uniforms, it wasn't enough for them. On the bleachers, their legs were still bare with only their shin-guards covering the lower portions of their legs. All of the boys were softly ramming their cleats down in the hard, grassy field repeatedly. But, it didn't matter in the end. The cold was killing them. Samus herself tried her best to not look uncomfortable or cold, though she could feel her hands growing numb...

"Alright, listen here, fellas," Marth said as he hopped up and down in place to keep him warm. He stood in front of his teammates. He tried to look as professional as possible in this weather. He was, after all, captain of the team. "Buuurr!!! Okay, so we've been practicing for this game for AGES now. It's all or nothing. You guys can either go big or go home. But knowing how amazing we all are, I'm confident that we will win. We've been working so hard and for so long on this. We're going to just enjoy our days as being young, and do what we can. Because you know what, guys? This moment is not going to last forever. We gotta do what we can to come out as victorious! Now let me hear us roar, bros!"

All of the team members got off the bleaches (even an unwilling Link and Samus) as they circled around their leader. Even with all of them shivering, they put their hands together. "ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAARRRR!!!! GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO SMASH BROTHERS!"

"Whoo!" Marth whooped as he high-fived most of his teammates hands. He noticed an unenthusiastic Hero of Time. "Come on, Link! Give me a high-five and a whoop! Let's be positive about this game!"

"... Whoop." Link responded monotonously as he also weakly slapped his left hand against Marth's.

"YEAAAAAH!!!!" Marth shouted as the blond hero gave him a funny look. "What?!"

"Ummm.... Excuse me?" A squeaky voice pipped from behind. The blue haired boy swirled around. A small girl of twelve years old stood in front of him.

"Yes?"

"Umm... You're Prince Marth Lowell of Altea, aren't you?" She stated rather than asked as she looked up at him with her thick glasses. Marth nodded his head as she continued, "You're participating in the Super Smash Brothers Tournament... right?"

Marth nodded his head again. "Could you please sign this?" The girl held up a newspaper article with Marth smiling along with the rest of the smasher crew. The prince grinned.

"Sure." As he began to take the red pen from the girl, someone placed a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"Listen here, little girl. Marth isn't going to waste your time right now. I don't know if you've noticed, Missy, but he's got a _soccer game_ to play in. He's the captain of the team, and it's a _semi-final_ game. I'm sure you knew that, right?" Megan Anderson leered.

"I-uh... I was perfectly aware of that..." The girl stated nervously as she drew her newspaper article away from Marth and held it closely to her chest. Her eyes shifted left and right from behind her spectacles as she backed away. As much as he wanted to snap at her, Marth tried to play it cool.

"Oh come on! Don't be like that, Anderson!" Marth said. He smiled at the young girl once more before facing Megan again. "Anderson, this is only going to take thirty seconds. It's no big deal. Come over here, little girl. I'll sign your article. If you've got a digital camera on you, I'll take a picture of you as well!"

The girl's face lit up. "Really?" She asked excitedly. Marth naturally smiled.

"I'm serious. This is legit." Marth replied. The girl gave a quick flash of her teeth as she found it hard to not let her happiness glow.

"Awh, you've got a cute smile," Marth said as Megan gaped at his words. The twelve year old girl blushed as she handed the prince the article. With a flick of his pen, the swordsman's handwriting flowed neatly across a blank spot of the newspaper. He grinned once again, "Here you go."

The girl tried her best to not show her excitement, but it was useless. She was grinning from ear to ear. "I do have a digital camera," she said as she fished for her silver device in her tote bag. Once she finally found the device, she handed it to Marth.

"Hey Link! Do you wanna take a picture of us?" Marth shouted when he noticed the Hylian passing by.

The boy with pointed ears tried not to send a glowered look at the prince. "No. Why do you always get me to do this shit?" Link retorted coolly. He was about to leave it at that when he added: "Stop bugging me, Marth."

"Because you're the best photographer here! There's no way I'm asking Roy to take a picture for this fan because he can't even hold the camera straight! Come on, man! Lighten up! Just take this picture for me, and I won't review the game plan with you again. I promise."

Refraining his grumble, Link snatched the camera from his friend's hand. "Get close to that girl." With precise accuracy, the Hero of Time held down the shoot button and took a perfect memory of the two. His azure eyes darted towards Marth and the young girl. "Take it back." He told them before slinking off to practice for the game.

The twelve year old's eyes were amazed. "Wow! It came out really nicely! Thank you, Link! I hope you do well in the Tournament as well!" The girl called out before sauntered off happily. Marth waved good-bye.

"Cute smile?" Megan's voice intervened while Marth did his best to not glare at her. In fact, he didn't even look at her. "Cute smile? Did you even _see_ the way the girl was dressed? She honestly seemed as though she weighed a hundred pounds for her age, and those thick glasses, Marth? She's probably blind like a bat without them. Honestly. You should know that she's ugly and she isn't worth your time."

"Whatever, Anderson. I really don't care for people's appearances as long as I can make them happy by being myself," he said, facing her.

"Excuse me," a middle aged woman said as she came closer to two.

"Yes?" The Altean answered, directing his attention towards the woman.

"Hello, Mr. Lowell. I would like to thank you for doing that for my daughter. I swear, I've never seen her look so happy in a very long time," the lady explained.

"Really now? Well, I'm glad to know that I could help her! Is she alright though?"

"Oh, she's just fine. See, the problem with her is that she has chronic Lyme disease. She's been sick for over a year. It's really been slowing her down on her schoolwork, social life, and everything in general."

".... Chronic Lyme disease, Ma'am?" Marth questioned as his eyes scanned around the area to get a closer look at the girl he just met.

"Yes. She has brain fogs, extreme fatigue, and she has to take quite a bit of medication. Well, I'm really glad that you made her happy today. I have extreme gratitude for your nobleness, Mr. Marth Lowell," the middle aged lady said with a bow.

Marth smiled once again, "No problem." As the lady hobbled off, the bluehead's eyes shifted towards Megan who had been silent throughout the whole conversation. "So what do you say now, Anderson? The girl is sick. You can't expect someone to always be fit and healthy like you are."

"Oh hush, Marth. I still think what I think when I first saw her. She's as ugly as a rat."

"Say all the hurtful things you want to that girl. But I wouldn't think you'd be so soulless to talk trash about a girl who's sick. You disgust me." Marth said before turning on his heel. The whistle was blown to signify that the game was starting soon. Marth did not look back once at Anderson's insulted, stupefied face. He kept on marching forward towards his future because the present was the most important thing to him. He had to do what he wanted now before it was all taken away.

* * *

The score was tied two to two. Within fifty-five minutes of sweat, aches, and kicking, Smash Brothers High and Rutsenburg Private Academy were locked in an intense game. She was ready. She had been ready for quite a while now. But it was now or never. Samus Aran was determined to show the world her strength in this soccer game. She had fantasized people having their eye fixed on her as she'd skillfully move the ball across the field. It was like a dance to her. Like a tango, her feet would speed up when the field was clear, fierce and bold. Though, when an opponent came in contact, she'd slow down and do her best to dodge each obstacle in her way. Life was a game. Samus had to gun her way through or halt when necessary. What she really was looking forward to was finally proving something important to the guys at her school. She didn't want to be taken lightly because of her gender. She hated that. Why did guys treat her so differently all the time? Especially Marth. She definitely wanted his eyes on her while she'd make a score.

Samus' emerald eyes flickered as the autumn air continued to bite her cheeks. Rutsenburg had just made that last score. Both teams reformatted to their own playing side to continue the next round. Samus was on offense. She headed towards the middle part of the field where she stood near the left end of the central circle. The Altean bastard was center offense. He was still giving her an evil eye as though to say, "You messed up big time with that last score". She flashed her bright red tongue out at him when nobody was looking.

His eyes were the signal for when the round would start. As soon as he touched the soccer ball to pass it to another player, the opponents were free to steal the ball from them. A flash of his azure eyes confirmed that he was going to pass the ball. With a swift kick, Marth passed the ball to Roy. They all were on the move and with the first pass, the Rutsenburg players came close to Smash Brothers High. Roy dribbled the ball as he swiftly dodged the opponent charging straight at him. His cleats rammed into the solid, cold ground as he continued to run across the field. Another Rutsenburg player was coming at him from the right. He weaved the ball quickly between his two legs, stepping over the ball in rapid movements. He glanced up to see who he could pass the ball to. No one was available except for Samus who was located farther down the field to the left. Their eyes locked for a second. Knowing that another player was approaching him in front, the redhead dribbled the ball with his left foot. As the player got within three feet towards him, Roy used his right foot to quickly snake a kick from behind.

"Samus!" He called out.

The blond girl snatched the ball with her feet. As though it had all been planned out earlier, the bounty huntress kicked the black and white orb as hard as she could. A defense player who stood at least 180 centimeters charged straight in front of the girl. Samus dribbled the ball left as the tall boy mirrored her. She moved right. The boy still followed her moves.

The huntress felt her palms becoming sticky and moist. She wasn't sure what to do. She just kept on dribbling the ball forwards as the tall boy kept up with her, attempting to steal the ball. She shifted her body to the side to make sure that he wouldn't come in contact with the black and white orb. She remained calm, but she could feel herself panicking. There wasn't that much time in the game and she knew that she could win.

It hit her then that she remembered a nice, trick move that most professional soccer players used. She let the boy get in front of her. As he made a direct approach to steal the ball, she kicked the ball directly in between his legs and ran to the left side to regain the ball. The boy stood there in a moment, baffled at what happened.

This was it. She was only a couple yards away from the goal. No other defense player was near the goal. It was just between Samus and the goalkeeper. The goalkeeper had his hands open, waiting for the girl's shot. His body was facing the direction of the female smasher coming in from the left side of the field. Since his attention was completely focused on Samus, he wasn't aware of the other player near the goal net.

"Aran! Pass it here!" Marth shouted on the right side of the field.

The blond ignored the bluehead. She could handle this. She could score the winning shot into the goal. She didn't want to look weak. There was only thirty seconds left in the game. It was either pass or shoot. Samus had to choose the one she felt comfortable with.

"Aran! I'm open! Pass it to me!" The prince of Altea screamed again.

With all of her might, she sent a kick to the ball towards the goal. She hoped the ball would maybe curve due to the angle she kicked it. The crowd all made an anxious, hopeful "oh" sound. But it was futile. The goalie had been anticipating Samus' shoot for so long. He naturally caught the ball by moving his whole body to the left. The girl's whole body froze. How could the shot not gotten through to the net? A whistle screeched loudly as the crowd made a disappointed groan.

"That's the end of the game!" The referee declared.

Samus felt her body melt down to the ground as she felt destroyed. She didn't understand at all. As the Rutsenburg kids whooped in a cheer, the Smash Brothers High players didn't hide their upset faces. Roy sighed while Link crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. Falco and Fox both had a half-grin on their faces while Marth stared blankly at Samus. They had only tied for this game. Smash Brothers High had not been able to break their curse of losing against Rutsenburg.

Samus slowly pulled herself together and raised herself up from the ground. All of the other players were abandoning the field and heading back to the bleachers where their coaches made comments. Everyone else on the Smash Brothers High boy soccer team was already back on the benches saying nothing. When Samus approached the team, she avoided all eye contact. She could tell their were blaming her for the tied score.

"Aran, why didn't you pass the ball to me?" Marth demanded as he slowly came towards her. "I was WIDE open. That Rutsenburg goalie didn't even notice I was there. If you passed it to me, I would've been able to shoot it in the goal and we would've won!"

All of the other players nodded in agreement and mumbled about how Samus made a mistake.

"I could've handled it myself, Lowell," she said slowly, "I don't need your help."

"No, Samus. Listen to me-"

"Don't you DARE use my first name! I don't want you getting friendly with me, Lowell!" Samus screamed loudly. A few adults who had watched the game gave her a funny look.

"... I'll still call you 'Samus' from now on. You listen here. I know why you didn't want to pass the ball to me. You just don't trust me, isn't it? You don't want to trust me. You don't want to show that you're dependent on me. You're afraid, aren't you? You're afraid of me!" Marth confronted as he came really close to her and looked her dead in the eye.

Samus tried to shift her gaze away from him. "What the fuck are you talking about? That is not true!"

"Why else would you not want to pass the ball to me then? Because you didn't see me? Bullshit. You've been saying that all the time during the practices. You ALWAYS see me open. But you never pass the ball to me. There is no "I" in "team", Samus! When will you learn to get over yourself and learn how to work with me?" Marth asked in a high toned, forceful voice. He was frustrated. He wasted all of that time practicing to win this game. He had put so much effort into not only playing, but captaining the team into winning. Now, he was responsible for their loss. It wasn't only Samus, but it was him as well. He partially blamed himself.

"You have no right to make that assumption! Who do you think you are? You're not God! You don't know what goes on in my head and you don't understand me either!" the huntress shouted as she slowly crept towards Marth too. The two were dangerously coming close to each other. Everyone on the team knew that this could lead into a physical fight.

"Alright, break it up you two!" Mr. Jackson said as he pushed the two away from each other. "Marth, calm down. You're captain and you're responsible for your own actions. You should be acting more mature about this. Aran... Well, you messed up. I will admit you should've passed the ball to Marth. You're off the team now until you learn how to play well with other players."

".... But it's the end of the season, Mr. Jackson! What good would that do me!?" Samus demanded.

"Precisely. I'm giving you a whole year for you to grow up. Maybe then you can come back on the boy's soccer team since girls' isn't that advanced compared to ours," Mr. Jackson said calmly with a smile.

".... FINE!" Samus replied as she stormed off. She grabbed her sports bag and water bottle from behind the benches and glared at the whole team. "I'm leaving!"

Marth shook his head at the blond girl. He sighed in stress until he felt a hand placed on his left shoulder. His body stiffened like a toy solider. His head turned and he saw his least favorite person: Megan Anderson again.

"I'm sorry that you lost the game, Marth," the popular girl said.

"It's alright, Anderson. At least we only tied," Marth answered as he sighed again.

"Well, you never should've let Aran play on the team anyway. The way she plays soccer is very rough like a drunk man from a bar. Unlike you, you play with grace, elegance, and poise. It's more of an art for you rather than it is for Samus," she rambled as her left hand made gesticulations in the air. Her arm clanged with all of those gold bangles she had on.

"Anderson?" Marth asked.

"Yes, Marth?"

"Fuck off. I'm NOT in the mood to talk to anyone now," the prince said as he quickly walked away, leaving the brunette's mouth hanging open.

* * *

"Hey," a voice said to the frustrated bounty huntress. The emerald eyes of Samus Aran flashed upwards to see the princess of Hyrule staring at her. The blond commoner was just about to place her crimson motorcycle helmet on until her friend stopped her.

Samus smiled softly, "So, you did come."

Zelda grinned back, "Of course I did. You told me to."

"Hah, I did because I thought I was gonna win the game," Samus replied as she began to mount on her motorcycle. Staring blankly in space, she sat still for a few seconds before adding: "I fucked everything up."

"It was a great game to watch. I came because I wanted to support you. I didn't know if you could hear me cheering you on. You did your best and that's what really matters. It's not the end of the world. Don't hold yourself accountable for everything that happened today. You can't change the past, Sam," Zelda lectured.

"Yeah, I know. I don't know. I don't really feel like talking about it. I'm really... not in the mood to do anything right now," Samus explained as she also huffed a heavy sigh.

The Hylian tried to smile as she leaned forward and gave Samus a hug. The bounty huntress felt her whole world stop revolving for a moment. Her friend embraced her dearly. Never before had Samus really been held by anyone except for Captain Douglas Falcon. She had been a lonely child throughout most of her life. For the first time in a long time, Samus Aran didn't know how to respond to her best friend showing affection. She slowly wrapped her arms around her friend as well. Had friendship always been this sweet and loving? If it was, then how come she wasn't used to receiving such affection before? She had always received affection from Falcon, but why was it so foreign and always shocking?

"Samus, I hope you feel better. Try to not think about what happened today. I hope you survive work," Zelda said in her left ear.

"Thanks," the other girl said in an unconfident voice. As Zelda waved good-bye, Samus hesitantly raised her hand in the air as well to wave. She paused before turning the keys of her motorcycle and riding off to her workplace.

* * *

"There's a spill at table seven," a girl told the huntress later. Samus tried to hide her displeased face.

"Ugh," she grumbled before grabbing a washcloth. As her co-worker gave her a snide smirk in entertainment, Samus rolled her eyes. She had to put up with this. If she was able to survive four more hours, she'd get her paycheck and get the Hell out of work. She put on her best fake smile as she came towards the table, "I heard you guys had a spill?"

The small party of four both faced their waitress and nodded their heads. Samus tried to smile more reassuringly as she noticed the water and ice scattered all over the table. Using her left hand, she placed her right hand at the end of the table and scooped all of the ice in her right hand. Clenching the dripping ice in her right hand, she began to wipe the table as the customers moved their plates away so that she could fully wipe it down. When she was done, she stood up straight and put a plastic smile on her face again.

"Do you need anything else?" she asked sweetly.

"Nope, we're all set," the father of the family said as the whole group smiled.

The female, aggressive smasher smiled again as she left the table. Her customers were that perfect family that you saw would see in commercials going out for the night. As the two children were coloring their paper kid menus and the mother eating her sandwich, Samus felt envious of those two kids. They had no idea how lucky they were to have parents who cared about them and would give them whatever they wanted. They didn't have to worry about having a job, surviving high school, or disappointing other people yet. They were still too young to even understand it. Passing by the trash bin, she threw the ice away and tossed the washcloth into the water bin. She wiped her hands on her apron as she drew out her phone to see the time. It was three forty-seven. She would get out at seven. Time always seemed to move so slowly when she was waiting around for the food to be cooked or a client needing something.

"Samus! Seventeen's order is up!" the cook said as Samus grinned. Finally. This meant something to do.

"Careful, the plates are hot." The cook warned her. Ignoring what he said, she took the two plates out from the top shelf where the cook placed them. She winced. The plates burned her fingers. They must've come straight from the dishwasher. She would have to deal with it though. The pain would only be temporary if she got the plates out quickly though. She exited the kitchen as she came to see a happy, young couple being all mushy gushy to each other. She was almost going to barf in disgust to see the two so happily teasing each other.

"Alright, so the chicken BBQ super melt?" She asked as her young, female customer raised her hand. She placed the plate to her left side. "The tuna roll?"

"Right here," the man said as Samus set the dish down to her right.

"Do you two need anything else, or are you all set?" the waitress questioned as the couple faced each other.

"Nope. We're all set!" the man said with a grin.

Samus flashed another closed-mouth smile and scurried back to the kitchen. She sighed as she leaned her back against the counter. She hated her life.

"Aran, table six is complaining. They said you made a mistake on their order. You were supposed to sub the white bread on their turkey club sandwich to rye bread," a fellow waitress told her.

"... Oh shit," Samus said as she hurried towards the nearest restaurant computer. "Shit shit shit."

"Did you write this down?" the other waitress asked.

"Yes, I did. I just... forgot to put it in right." Samus explained as she slid her card and selected table six's bill. She selected the turkey club order, voided it, and inserted it again with the substitute of rye bread.

"Aran. This is, like, the fifth mistake you've made today! I don't know what is up with you, but you are clearly sucking today. Your customers keep complaining to me and every other waitress about your service. You need to get your act together and focus on your job right now. You're going to get fired if you keep this up."

"I know, Lisa. I know. I've just had a rough day," Samus explained as she pressed the "print" button to send the order to the cook.

"Hey Bill! Make this order for me for table six!" Samus yelled down the kitchen hallway as the cook snatched the printed slip.

"... Another turkey club sandwich? What did I do wrong with the other one?"

"I forgot to tell you to substitute the white bread for rye," the smasher explained. Bill gave her a half-smile.

"You really are messing things up, girl," Bill stated as he pulled out two slices of rye bread and placed it in the toaster.

Samus looked down at her feet. All of her co-workers were giving her a glare. If the bounty huntress could turn invisible, she would do so. She hated this. She hated her work. She hated school. She hated soccer. She hated her life. But most of all, she hated Prince Marth Lowell for being so God damned right about why she didn't pass the ball to him. She didn't trust him. She didn't know how. There were still unresolved issues between her and him. She didn't want to admit that she was beginning to think of him as a decent person and worthy to play a game with.

"Hey, Aran. Cover for me while I go out for a smoke," Lisa told her as Samus only stared at her co-worker.

The other female exited the kitchen and went out the front door as the huntress noticed something on the counter: a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. She looked around to see if anyone was noticing her. She knew that she had broken her habit of smoking, but now... this was tempting. The temptation was teasing her. She felt as though some nicotine was still left in her body, and she craved for more. This was her addiction. She missed the feel of the smooth, cigarette paper between her fingers, the smell of tobacco, the hazy feeling she'd get from a puff, and the smoke clouding her eyes. This and many other drugs were her escape from the real world and into her own. Her right hand slowly inched closer... Yes... She could get her escape if her heart desired so...

"Aran! The redo of the turkey club for table six is up!" Bill yelled. Samus broke her gaze on the pack of cigarettes and the lighter. She dropped her hand and knew that she had to take care of her work first. Disappointed, she sighed and headed towards the grill to get the order out.

It was going to be a long night; but in the end, Samus knew she would get through it. This was only one of the many challenges she would experience. She needed to learn to become stronger without the help of drugs, alcohol, or cigarettes. Captain Douglas Falcon made his career without the drugs. She could be like him as well. She wanted to be like him as well. And one day, she wanted him to return back home to her as the woman he deserved.

* * *

_Hi everyone! I apologize for not updating in such a long time. School caught the best of me and I ended up spending my time being stressed, depressed, and frustrated. I admit, I could've pushed myself more to update soon. I also got into some family drama shit. Just ask __**KILL THE EMPIRE**__, __**crystalicos**__, __**Royal Kenya**__, __**ptpeach**__, or __**halomasterchief**__, and they'll all agree that I'm having a really rough time with my family. Being first generation is very tough in this society. _

_This chapter was hard for me to write. I haven't been writing in a while. At some parts, I felt like another Stephenie Meyer (I'm sorry, Twilight fans, but I don't like Stephenie Meyer's writing. :P), writing a lame-ass, vampire (Except, I don't have vampires... yet. ;]) fan fiction story with better characterization and plot._

_Again, I'm truly sorry. I feel as though I owe all of you an explanation to why I haven't been updating. It's taking me while to realize that I'm not the only one suffering in this world and I gotta keep moving. _

_Please give me any feedback (positive stuff, negative stuff... you know what I want. Anything is good, except those who talk about my personal life. :P). On a lighter note, I attended Anime Boston all weekend. It was great. I wish I could've updated sooner to ask who would come to the convention so that I could meet up with a few of my readers._

_AND I THANK EVERYONE WHO VOTED FOR __SWEET CHILD O' MINE__ AND __GARDENIA__ FOR THE UFO AWARDS!!! Thank you so much! __Sweet Child O' Mine__ got third place in the Legend of Zelda category and __Gardenia__ received Honorable Mention. Thank you to all. I appreciate your votes and am proud to have you all as my readers/reviewers/voters._

_-BKP_


	18. Hang Me Up to Dry

**Hang Me Up to Dry**

Princess Zelda Harkinian sat straight up in the carriage, hoping that she'd be calm throughout her study session with Link. Another Monday afternoon was already here. As planned, the two Hylains would research their Biology project at Link's place in Kokiri Forest. Zelda took a deep breath to relax. It wasn't working. She always felt tense whenever Link Wright was around. She never felt loose around him; she felt the need to always be polite, reserved, and yet aggressive to make him treat her equally. Even though he was only a few yards ahead of her, she could smell his presence. She glanced outside the carriage window to see how her carriage driver, Koji, was dealing with this. He, on the other hand, appeared to be indifferent to the situation. Her carriage driver followed the other Hylian, mounted on his beautiful mare, across Hyrule Field.

The weather was cold and dreary; everything outside was grey. The princess curled her gloved fingers tightly. Even with her thick, royal blue cloak on, she shivered a bit from time to time. It was inevitable; winter was just around the corner. She leaned back, closed her eyes, and pretended that she wasn't here. She tried to imagine herself at Lon Lon Ranch, conversing with Malon late in the night. She tried to remember the copper flame of Malon's hair, but it was no use. She was still stuck in this dreadful position of working with Link Wright.

_'It'll only be for a few hours. At the most, it'll be three. I can deal with this. I should learn to suck it up. Samus always has crazy customers at work and yet she still puts up with Marth. If she can live her life all happy and unaffected, then why shouldn't I?'_ She thought. Though, she realized that she had just contradicted herself considering the fact that Samus did _not_ get along with Marth Lowell.

The cold was still irritating her. Through the cloak, her legs were a bit numb. She should've worn a longer skirt to school, but she wasn't aware of the weather of that day. She knew that part of growing up was about accepting difficult situations, but for once she wanted to be immature and whine about it. But whining would get her no where. She tilted her head back against the carriage seat and closed her eyes again. School always caused a headache. Just like everyone else, she wanted to go home, destress, and relax.

"One... Two... Three...." She counted as she sucked some air in and pretended that she was back in her comfy bedroom. She could smell the pine from her wooden bed stand and feel her body sinking deep into her feather bed and pillows. She was safe in her bedroom. She held her breath for three seconds. As she exhaled, she counted again, "One... Two... Three."

Releasing a gasp for air, she smiled. She felt much better after mediating for a bit. She began the process again.

"One... Two... Three..." She said as she held it again for three more seconds. She began to exhale: "One... Two... Thr-"

"Princess Zelda! We've arrived to Kokiri Forest!" Koji said, breaking her out of the trance.

Her eyes snapped open. She took a peek outside of carriage to observe her surroundings. Her eyes widen with interest to see the place Link Wright lived. She heard many things about the Kokiri. But she didn't expect them to be half her height. She thought they would be shorter than that like toddlers. They all had different colored balls of light with fly-like wings on them. All of them were small like ten year olds Hylians. Like children, they were all seen huddling around each other, whispering and pointing at her carriage, or giggling at their fairies. She'd never seen a Kokiri or a fairy before. She didn't understand what Link meant by that he was a Kokiri. He clearly was a Hylian due to his height and build. Kokiri were children with fireflies dancing around them.

And never had Zelda seen so much forestry in her life. Everywhere she looked was emerald or mahogany with the richness of trees, shrubs, and bushes. Houses for the Kokiri were made out of half a tree. The trunk bases would serve as the base of the house. All of them were brown, and yet they all seemed to made of different trees due to the different bark colors and the style of how the tree was grown. Everything was fascinating to see. Though the Kokiri appeared to be children, they certainly had enough intelligence to create a home out of the most natural resources around them. It was amazing, beautiful.

"Link! Link! You're back!" a small voice pipped. The princess' eyes flashed right to see how the Hero would react to that statement. She'd expect a cold, hard glare coming straight from Wright's face. However, a small, gentle smile emerged on Link's face.

"Hey, Fado. How have you been?" The so-claimed Kokiri asked, still mounted on his faithful mare.

Zelda stared curiously at the young Kokiri female. A fern-green, short, small dress clung tightly against the tiny girl's body. The girl was a curious being with blond hair wrapped into two balloon shaped pigtails with a matching fern-green headband. Her pointed ears stuck straight out and her purple eyes were brimming with happiness. Even though Hyrule Field had been freezing due to autumn, Kokiri Forest's climate was extremely different. It seemed warmer. It was still slightly cold, but not as much. All of the children showed off so much skin compared to Hylians.

"We're all happy that you've come back early!" Fado exclaimed in a high voice.

Link grinned once more before removing his feet from the stirrups of his saddle. Epona sneezed loudly as her master swung one leg over and dismounted. Link looked at his faithful companion and smiled warmly as he fondly stroked the mare's neck. Zelda, curious as ever, also slowly opened the carriage door and stepped out to get a better look. She hoped none of the Kokiri would notice her. In fact, all of them seemed to pay more attention to Link opposed to the Hylian visitor.

"I'm glad to be back home for the day. School was boring and stressful. How are you all doing though? Have you all been taking care of the Great Deku Tree?" He questioned as he smiled at all of them. All of the Kokiri children excitedly told them about their day taking care of the Great Deku Tree. The boy with Sheikah earrings only smiled. He playfully pulled down some of the caps of the Kokiri as the princess continued to observe.

Never had Zelda seen such a gentle, soft look on Wright's face. She gaped at it. Certainly, he looked a thousand times more handsome compared to his usual, cold glare. There was something beautiful about him despite that cold barrier he created. His smile was natural and genuine. She noticed how his lips were curled upwards with their fine, rosy tint and shape of them like flower petals. His eyes had a sweet sense of affection which was rare to find. Finally, whenever he revealed his all straight and white teeth, she liked to see how his face looked with that sincerity and sweetness. The way he laughed was a ripple that erupted in the air with care freeness just like one of the Kokiri.

"He's completely different than what you would expect at school, right?" a deep, yet feminine voice announced.

The Hylian's branch of thoughts stopped. "Huh?" She said as she looked at her left.

There stood a young Kokiri girl with short, green leaf hair. She did not face Zelda, but she was staring at the other Hylian as well. She had a small, all-knowing smirk on her face. Her hair was combed down at the back of her neck and curving from behind her pointed ears. She wore a long-sleeved dark grassy colored dress cut short before her knees along with a green and gold buckled belt. Dark, forest green boots stood half-way up her calf.

The Kokiri girl closed her eyes, smirked, and when her eyes opened, deep blue eyes flashed towards the Hylian. "Link. He acts the opposite of what you'd think he'd act like, right?"

Zelda blinked a few times before shifting her glance at the ground. "Um, I guess... What do you exactly mean by that?"

"I mean that Link does not act the same way he does here than he does at school. And you wouldn't expect that from him... Am I right? Every foreigner that sees Link here at Kokiri Forest is always shocked to see his real self," the girl with moss-green hair commented.

"Huh.... So that's his "real" self?" The princess of Hyrule questioned as she narrowed her eyes. She pressed her right fingers tips against her lips. She fiddled with the idea of Link Wright being so caring. Was it even possible for a Hylian like Link to even have a heart? She felt another warm, tingling sensation on the top of her right hand.

The short girl observed Zelda as the latter pondered about Link. The Kokiri noticed the Hylian's pretty features with her tallness and longer, pointy ears. Her eyes gazed towards the Hylian's right hand, surveying a gleaming triangular figure. However, she was not surprised. She only smiled as though she knew it had been coming all along. Yes, the Great Deku Tree knew what would come within time. She studied the princess a little bit more, acknowledging that she was the Princess of Destiny who could change the Hero's life.

"People are so quick to judge," she added slowly. Zelda's eyes focused back toward the greenhead while the girl didn't bother facing back. Her bright eyes were still fixed on Link as the Hylian watched the girl carefully.

"Whenever a person meets Link, they always view him as either _this_ or **that**. He's neither of what they think he is. He's always misunderstood. Of course, I cannot really blame those people for thinking that. I'd be like that too if I were them. I'd judge him quickly and think he's a real prick. His coldness comes off as arrogant, narcissist, and immature. In some ways, it is," she said as she shifted her eyes towards Zelda to see if the princess understood what she was saying. The Hylian princess only stared back at her with slight shock and consideration to the Kokiri female's words. Saria focused her glance back at Link as she continued:

"But I don't always see it that way... There are reasons to why he's like this. It's a self-defense mechanism for him. He's not necessarily a person who wants to be anti-social and iconoclastic. But rather, he just wants to weed out those who would have superficial relationship with him. He does this to see who really cares and who doesn't. Those who take the time to get to know Link are the people he finds to be most important."

Zelda faced Saria to see her face again. Saria smiled warmly at the Link across from the two Hyruleans. The blond took another peek at Link Wright. He was laughing with happiness as all of his Kokiri friends were clutching him and even climbing up. They were all having a fun time, testing the Hero's strength. He tried to balance all the Kokiri on him as they continued to tug at his school uniform. One of them even stole his uniform tie and ran away with it. As Link called out in half anger and half laughing, Zelda tilted her head to the left. He really did seem to be happier, nicer, and more gentle of a Hylian. There was something a lot more warm to his aura when he was with those Kokiri.

Saria slowly inhaled some of the autumn air through her nose. She closed her eyes as she began to explain, "He wasn't always cold and introverted, you know. There was a time when he was cheerful and carefree as he is now. There was an incident five years ago..."

The blond's blue eyes flashed towards the greenhead again. "What do you mean by "incident"?"

"A strong man who had a thirst for power came to our forest five years ago. I believe he came from the desert. He must've been Gerudo. He came to visit our Great Deku Tree to see if he could use our land to help his plans. Our Great Deku Tree strongly opposed his ideas and this Gerudo used his power to destroy our land. He burned down several of our homes, destroyed quite a lot of trees, and placed a curse on the Great Deku Tree."

The Hylian's mind froze, petrified with what the Kokiri girl was telling her. She said nothing, but she felt a vivid image of that man, Ganondorf, enter her mind. If anything, it seemed as though that man would do such a cruel thing. She knew that from the aura when she met him that day with Link and her father.

"He even tried to kill me. When his troops attacked our forest, I went to the Lost Woods to protect our sacred Forest Temple. He found me, and he attempted to kill me by using an electricity ball. However, Link was there. And he.... he was able to get me out of that situation quickly. Without him, I wouldn't have been able to make it back to Kokiri Forest in time for a treatment. I was lucky to survive and regain my health... But Link.... After that incident, he's become colder and more isolated. I think he was traumatized from that incident. I'm one of his closest friends. He probably thought he was going to lose me and now he's become bitter and cynical of situations," the Kokiri analyzed as she watched Link with scrutiny. Her bright eyes darted back towards the Hylian to see if she comprehended what Saria was saying.

"Hey. Do you wanna do me a favor?" Saria asked.

".... What?" The Hylian said.

She had been speechless throughout Saria's story about the massacre at Kokiri Forest. Never would she expect that other Hylian to live through such pain and agony from seeing the things he loved enjoyed. Perhaps, Saria was right. She misjudged him. She didn't know him at all. Link did seem to be the type to close himself off from the world after being scared by a near-death experience of a friend. The Hylian looked carefully in the Kokiri's eyes as though she was going to say something very important.

"... Would you be his friend? You don't know it... but outside of Kokiri Forest... he's pretty lonely. Yes, he has Marth and Roy. They know about his past. Like you, they also thought he was a real jackass at first. But he's still not always comfortable with them as he is with me. Though, once they got him to be more open... Link secretly cares for them more than anything. He won't admit it because he has trouble voicing his feelings. He doesn't want to admit that he thinks Marth is a good guy because he also thinks that Marth is a very silly boy."

Zelda said nothing for a moment as she glanced at her feet. She didn't know what to say. Asking to be Link's friend was not a favor, but a command. A duty. A wish. It was something she'd be gambling on. She didn't even know how to treat Link Wright. She didn't even know if he would be willing to be her friend. How would she befriend Link? Link was difficult and sometimes unpredictable. To her, it'd be as if she was a rabbit trying to a tame a fox.

"... You have a piece of the Triforce.... I've seen it on you. And Link has a piece of it as well. And so did that dreadful Gerudo, Ganondorf. Perhaps, this is fate. The Great Deku Tree always mentioned that Link's fate was tied to the princess of Hyrule. You should be able to connect to Link on a different level. And I think.... Link would like that very much. He won't show it often at first, but when he does... You'll know. You just will know. And he'll eventually become better and more open..."

The teenage blond girl stared confusedly at the Kokiri girl. The girl dressed in all green only smiled with warmness and wisdom. Her eyes darted the Hylian with a look of confidence as though she was making a declaration. Her eyes flickered a few times as she slowly digested the material in her head. Triforce? Why did that term sound so familiar? Wasn't it from a legend? Yet, it also felt something more to her as though she had it before... a long time ago... But she shook that thought in her head to answer the question.

She did feel bad for that Hero who had a hard life. In some ways, she could imagine how rough it would to think his most beloved friend almost die. If she tried to place herself in his shoes, she knew she'd be having similar feelings compared to him. She tried to imagine her life if she lost Impa. Certainly, she'd become more bitter and pessimistic of the world. Perhaps, Link Wright was the type who depended too much on the people he was currently with. Maybe he didn't like change and he wanted the people around him to always be the same. With careful consideration, stupidity, and empathy at the time, Zelda had her answer.

"Alright. I'll do my best to become Link Wright's friend. But don't get me wrong... I'm only doing this because I feel sorry for the hard life he's gone through..."

Saria smirked in more pleasure than Zelda thought she would. The princess feared her answer would put her through more danger than she thought. Friendship of any kind puts one in danger, but one of true friendship has someone do it out of love rather than of a duty. Little did Zelda know, this friendship with Link would make her become stronger.

* * *

The royal Hylian watched the boy carefully. One minute, he was all happy and playing around with his Kokiri friends and the next second... he was sitting across from her in the main room of his Kokiri tree house. The room was small; it was only fit for only one person to live. In the center of the room was his table with tree stump seats and to the side were his bed and bookcases along with picture frames and a dresser. There wasn't that much color at all; everything inside was brown, natural, and dull.

He listened to his MP3 player, and he treated her no different than before. Becoming Link's friend was not easy. His eyes were closed as he soaked up the bass sounds of his music. His legs were crossed with the top, left foot bouncing up and down in the air to the rhythm of what he listened to. His hands closed the ear buds nestled in his pointy ears as if he wanted to block all outside noise. Zelda bit the side of her tongue as she continued to watch the boy.

"Ahem," she said. They were _supposed_ to be working on their project. Wasn't that the reason why they were together at this moment? Link didn't respond. She wondered if he even heard her. She'd try again.

"Ahem!" she coughed more clearly and loudly. The azure eyes of the other Hylian snapped open with a glare. He shifted his whole body upwards into a more straight position as he continued to glare at the princess.

"I was trying to ignore your presence," he stated as Zelda frowned.

"Well, too bad. I exist and you'll have to murder me if you want me to go away. And if you do murder me, be aware that my father will have his guards beat you, rape to death, eaten, and have your skin sewn into their clothing… in that order, hopefully," Zelda said meekly.

"Bitch," Link commented while twisting off his right ear bud out and paused his MP3 player.

"So are we going to work on this project or not?" The future queen of Hyrule demanded impatiently.

She regretted saying that once she noticed Link usual glaring. If she wanted to accomplish becoming friends with Link, she'd have to be more gentle. But she'd have to find an opportunity to show him her gentle side. She'd have to kill him with kindness if she wanted to be his friend. Besides, she had only been fighting with fire and that was exactly what Link was doing in return.

"_You_ can work on it. I'm stressed, tired, and I don't want to work with you on this. Look, I already got all of the resources for you. You see these books right here?" He asked. He picked up a textbooks on a stacked pile of Cuccos resources in front of her, held it up, and pointed at the cover. "Read those and take notes. You can do the worksheet on it. I didn't get any sleep at all last night. I pulled an all-nighter."

Zelda rose an eyebrow with a curious look, "Oh? And what were you doing all night? You knew that you had school later today."

"That's none of your business," he began to say, but he noticed the eagerness of knowledge Zelda's eyes. She would be reluctant to leave it at that. She would be like Marth in a sense where she'd pester him for an answer. He knew that look all too well. And since when did she become so interested in his life? ".... I was busy protecting something and let's leave it at that."

The girl gave a satisfactory smile at his response as though she was glad that he told her some information. "Still," she said in a softer, yet gentler voice. "I can't be the one doing all the work. Can't you just read some information to soak it all in your head? If you do that, I won't bug you. I promise. You can listen to whatever you were listening to."

She grabbed one of the books on Cuccos, flipped open to a page, and began to read. She had her pen in her right hand with her binder open to a section of loose, leaf paper, ready to take notes. Now it was Link's turn to stare at her in confusion. What was she doing? Had she gone insane? Since when did she decide to act nice to him?

He only shrugged it off as he jammed his right ear bud back into his ear and pressed "Play" on his MP3. He closed his eyes and tried to have the music destress. He cranked up the volume, not caring if he went deaf. It was better to have loud music blast in his ears to hopefully drive away the headache he had. He wanted all of the memories of today to disappear. He shuffled through his music list until he found one of his favorites. He eagerly began to listen to the song. He adored the bass line in the intro of the song as he closed his eyes again.

_Careless in our summer clothes,_

_Splashing around in the muck and the mire._

_Careless in our summer clothes,_

_Splashing around in the muck and the mire._

He opened his eyes to see if Zelda was still working. She didn't say anything as her eyes scanned the textbooks. Was she really just going to sit there and work quietly on the project without his help?

_Fell asleep with stains,_

_Caked deep in the knees,_

_What a pain._

He shut his eyes and tried to soak up the song without feeling guilty. She agreed to do this. It was her choice anyway.

_Now hang me up to dry,_

_You wrung me out,_

_too too too many times,_

_Now hang me up to dry,_

_I'm pearly like the whites,_

_the whites of your eyes._

A memorable, stoic, light guitar riff played through as Link counted the hi hat from the guitar kit crashing multiple times. He still watched Zelda. Her eyes were focused completely on the work she was doing.

_All mixed up in the wash, _

_Hot water bleeding our colors,_

_All mixed up in the wash,_

_Hot water bleeding out colors..._

He wondered what Zelda would do if he spread his arms over the table, rested his head, and took a nap. Would she have a say about that? Would she even care to stop him? She was just nonchalantly taking notes. His eyes focused a little bit more on her fair face...

_Now hang me up to dry,_

_You wrung me out,_

_too too too many times,_

_Now hang me up to dry,_

_I'm pearly like the whites,_

_the whites of your eyes._

The same guitar riff repeated as he felt his eyes slowly drooping. He really didn't want to focus on anything else right now. He let his body slink forward as he used his arms on the table as a pillow. Finally, his body was able to relax after a long hard few days. He deserved it afterall. Balancing both the tournament and high school was hard.

_Now hang me up to dry,_

_You wrung me out,_

_too too too many times,_

_Now hang me up to dry,_

_I'm pearly like the whites,_

_the whites of your eyes._

Link Wright would just shut his eyes for a few seconds. For only ten seconds, he promised himself. No more, no less. Zelda wouldn't yell at him for that, and he could get away with it. Comforted by his way of thinking, he smiled slightly before dozing off.

… _Now hang me up to dry,_

_You wrung me out,_

_too too too many times,_

_Now hang me up to dry,_

_I'm pearly like the whites,_

_the whites of your eyes._

* * *

… He remembered that he couldn't catch his breath. He could see a blur of bright colors: red, green, orange, brown, black, purple, and maybe even yellow. There was the red from the blood, green from the trees, orange from the fires encircled in Kokiri Forest, black from the charred deaths of forestry, and purple from all of the sharp, big bruises on his fellow Kokiri's arms & legs. His ten year-old, naïve self bolted through the Lost Woods in search of his beloved friend.

"Saria!" He called out as he slowed down in his tracks.

Grim, black clouds enclosed the tops of the forest, creating a dark canopy all over the emerald land. The whole forest had been darker ever since that arrival of that Gerudo named Ganondorf. It was all because of him that their beautiful, wondrous forest was being destroyed. The once healthy, rich forest's life was being demolished by the fire's web. This sick man decided to "punish" the Great Deku Tree for rejecting his peace treaty. He decided to punish all of the Kokiri as well to show how serious he was with his plan of world domination.

Link panted a few times, half out of breath and half out of anxiety. He was scared. Never in his life had he ever had to worry about something so serious. All of his problems up until now were petty; he'd worry about what to eat, or how much he'd get his revenge on Mido for pulling pranks, or how he'd get better at the slingshot. It wasn't until this moment where he feared about his future. Even during this time of darkness, all the Kokiri tried to pull themselves as one. Mido, himself, had to push aside his jealousy of Link and tell him to find Saria. It was the Great Deku Tree's orders to find Saria and make sure she was protecting the Forest Temple.

Link's heart skittered inside his ribcage as he still glanced anxiously for his female friend. He was equipped with faithful Kokiri Sword and his Deku Shield. Yet, he still felt so useless with these fancy weaponry.

"Saria!" He called out again. He only heard his voice echo in the vast Lost Woods. No reply could be heard, and Link did hear rumors about those Kokiri who could never find their way back home... They'd be turned into Stalfos.

"Saria! Where are you?" He shouted.

He ran down one of the many tree-trunk tunnels in Lost Woods. His pointed ears perked up attentively to listen for that familiar, upbeat song. He closed his eyes as he tried to push his worries temporarily out of his head. The calm melody filled his ears as he imagined his Fairy Ocarina in his hands. He remembered all of the fingerings to the notes of the song. That was Saria's Song, but it was also his song as well... It was their song. The song reminded him of the love that he felt for her.

He opened his eyes. On the back of his hand, something was burning. But it didn't hurt. Instead, he felt this warm sensation all over his body like energy was being stored into him. He felt stronger, bolder, and full of rage. He was becoming out of control as though he was a wild bull on a ramage. He looked at the symbol on his hand. It was a triangle made up of four small triangles. Except the center triangle, all of them were all gold. And the lower, right triangle seemed to shine brighter than all of the others. What in the Sacred Realm was this?

Though, this strength gave him some courage to move his feet towards the Sacred Forest Meadow. All of the Deku Scrubs were gone. Perhaps, they all knew of Ganondorf's plan of destruction and left. His young, foolish self bolted through the maze. With each turn he made through the maze, he felt his heart beating faster and faster. He didn't know anymore if it was the fact he was running for his life or if it was for Saria. He stopped once he saw the steps leading up to the Forest Temple. His heart throbbed in his chest as he breathed heavily.

He took a gulp of his own saliva as he gritted his teeth. He couldn't be a coward for this. If he turned around and ran back to the Great Deku Tree, he knew he'd regret this decision of not protecting Saria or the Forest Temple. He marched up the steps as he drew his Kokiri Sword from its sheath.

It was there when he saw a terrifying sight. He stood there, petrified by the image in front of him. There was his friend's body curled on the ground. Clearly, someone attacked her. There was no blood or sight of visible injuries. But she was knocked out. … Though, that is what he thought. He wasn't too sure. He wasn't close enough to see if she was still alive. What would happen if she was gone? Gone to the Sacred Realm and never to come back? What would he do without her? His parents were gone, and Saria was the closest person to him besides the Great Deku Tree. What would he do without his best friend? She was everything to him. She was the reason why he kept on living and would smile at the world. The Hero's eyes did not blink. He sheathed back his Kokiri Sword.

"Saria!" He said as he rushed to her side.

He got down on the ground to see if she was alright. He brought her body closer to him, holding her tight. He tried to be calm. He couldn't worry about if she was dead or not. His heart was still racing in his chest. He placed a finger on her cheek to see if she was still warm. She was still breathing. He sighed in relief, but that didn't stop from him tearing up. He didn't know what would happen if he lost her. He held her closer as he let the tears drip from his face. He whispered in her ear:

"I'm sorry, Saria. I don't know what that man did to you... But I'll make sure he pays for it."

"Ah, so are you talking about me?" A deep, dark voice announced slyly.

Link's body froze in place. His head turned from behind him. There, mounted on a black, almost-dead-looking stallion, was Ganondorf. That Gerudo filled with malice, darkness, and hate. His yellow eyes shone with cunningness and his smirk was just as vile as his heart. His red hair was a darker shade compared to most redheads, burning as though it was from the fires of Hell. Link recalled the dark armor fitted around the strong man's body. This Gerudo was the reason why Saria was unconscious and knocked out cold. He was the reason why the Great Deku Tree was now cursed. And he was the reason why the whole forest was burning.

"YOU!" Link snarled angrily as he gently rested Saria's body back on the soft grass. He unsheathed his sword as he got his shield ready. He never had that much sword practice, but he knew the basics of swordplay. He positioned his body in a base pose with his sword and shield ready. The dark-skinned man only raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? You think you can take me on, boy? You're truly pathetic. This is what I like about you Kokiri. You all think you can do something when you really can't. You little people feel as though you can make a difference to Hyrule. In reality, you guys are the maggots of this earth. This was too easy. I destroyed your forest and I placed a curse on your Deku Tree. Your female friend was also foolish to try to protect the Forest Temple. There is no way a puny girl like her could protect the Forest Temple from _me_." He cackled.

"What did you do to her?" The young Hylian demanded through clenched teeth.

The Gerudo only smirked in more delight at the boy's response. "Nothing too malicious... I just gave her a taste of the Triforce. Only with one electricity ball, I was able to successfully knock her out. Hopefully, she'll die soon from the attack. She's weak."

"You touched her... I won't forgive you. You'll have to deal with me now that you've done that to her!"

"Ah, so you have feelings for that girl, eh? Boy, stop trying to be heroic. It won't work. You can't save her or yourself from ME!"

He raised his arm in the air as Link let out a cry and charged in front of him. The Gerudo gathered an orb of dark yellow light filled with power. He hurled the orb at the young Hylian. Link stopped in his tracks as he noticed this ball flying fast at him. Using his sword, he tried to shield the attack from reaching him. But it wasn't enough, he was blown back from the impact. The boy wearing green attempted to lift his upper body up. His eyesight was all blurry and he only saw a fuzzy image of the dark man on his horse. He heard Ganondorf's horse snort and a chuckle from the horseman.

"You really aren't worth my time... There is no way you'll win against me, boy. You may have won ten years ago... But you can't win now. Even though you have the Triforce of Courage bestowed, I've nailed you at this young age. I won't let you take the world away from me again. If you want to challenge me with that toy sword of yours, I suggest you see me again. In three years, you'll see me at the Tournament in Nintendo City. Even then, I'd love to see you try to stop me from ruling the world."

The Hylian's vision began to clear up again, yet all he could see was the Gerudo yank at the reins of his horse and leave. Link tried once more to get his body off from the ground. However, the pain was too great. He was still too weak from the attack to stand up. He glanced over to his left and saw Saria's body still on the ground, also unmoving and slowly being claimed by Death. Never in Link's life had he ever began to feel useless. He sat there as he wondered if he'd ever hear the birds of Kokiri Forest sing again. He wondered if he'd ever see Saria's smile again. He wondered if he could even save the people he cared for.

"Saria," he said softly with the tears streaming down his cheeks. "..... I'm sorry, Saria. I couldn't save you... I don't know... if you can hear me now.... But I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I wanted to protect you. I love you, Saria. I don't know if you'll ever feel the same way. Will I even get to see you again? Though, from now on.... I can't depend on you anymore. I don't even know what that man was saying about me winning ten years ago. What does he mean by that? And the Triforce? Saria.... I have to stand on my own now.... Maybe... You'll accept me for who I am when I'm older. I swear, I won't let you down... It's alright. I don't need to depend on anybody right now, but myself."

* * *

_COME WITH IT NOW!_

Link's eyes snapped open. What was going on? Where was he? He awoke, startled and jittery by what just happened. He had to save Saria! He was going to make sure that Ganondorf would pay for what he did five years ago... But wait. He was... here. Home with the princess of Hyrule right in front of him. It was all just a dream. He was safe. He didn't have to worry about that Gerudo harming him at this instant. How long had he been asleep? A few hours? And how come was it that the princess was still here, at this hour, and not caring about his napping?

_COME WITH IT NOW!_

He was hearing a heavy, edgy guitar riff from a song that he knew all too well. He glanced down to notice that his MP3 player's battery was low. This was the next song that came up on his shuffle setting.

_The microphone explodes,_

_Shattering the molds,_

_Either drop the hits like de la O,_

_Or get the fuck off the commode, _

_With the sure shot,_

_Sure to make the bodies drop,_

_Drop and don't copy yo,_

_Don't call this a co-op,_

_Terror rains drenching,_

_Quenching the thirst of the power dons,_

_That five sided fist-a-gon,_

_The rotten sore on the face of mother earth gets bigger,_

_The trigger cold empty your purse._

The Hylian lowered the volume on his MP3 player, but for some reason the device wasn't responding to his controls. He frantically glanced up at Zelda who was still reading her book. It was as though she didn't even notice he was awake right now. In fact, it seemed that no time had passed at all since he dozed off...

_RALLY ROUND THE FAMILY! _

_With a pocket full of shells,_

_THEY RALLY ROUND THE FAMILY!_

_With a pocket full of shells,_

_THEY RALLY ROUND THE FAMILY!_

_With a pocket full of shells,_

_THEY RALLY ROUND THE FAMILY!_

_With a pocket full of shells._

The fifteen year old boy only blinked a few times as he continued to listen closely to the song playing. He closed as his eyes as the vision of his home burning still was engraved in his mind. Had it really been only five years since that horrible day? He hadn't made that much progress from that day. He still needed to win the Tournament. If there was anything he didn't understand about his encounter with Ganondorf, it was the mentioning of the Tournament. The Tournament didn't even start five years ago. It only started two years ago. How did Ganondorf even know about it? He glanced down at his left hand. The Triforce of Courage wasn't visible now. It hadn't glowed on his left hand unless he was fighting in the Tournament. It always appeared sporadically. And when it did show, he felt stronger and braver.

_Weapons not food, not homes, not shoes,_

_Not need, just feed the war cannibal animal,_

_I walk the corner to the rubble that used to be a library,_

_Line up to the mind cemetery now,_

_What we don't know keeps the contracts alive and moving,_

_They don't gotta burn the books, _

_They just remove them,_

_While arms warehouses fill as quick as the cells,_

_Rally round the family, pocket full of shells!_

His music player was finally responding to him. He mashed his thumb over the pause button right before the singer would begin the chorus again. He ripped off his ear buds and frantically glanced upwards to Zelda.

"I-uh," he began to say, flustered about dozing off.

The princess of Hyrule only glanced up towards him and faced him straight in the eye. There was no glare or irritated look. Why was she still being nice? Was this just all a joke? This was the first time he had even been embarrassed in front of a girl other than Saria.

He desperately tried to collect himself together before regaining confidence and continued in his cold, emotionless voice, "How long was I asleep?"

"Only for about an hour," she merely replied before reading again.

Had he been asleep for that long? He let it go as he continued to study Zelda. She was still calm as ever with no look of displeasure. It was quite the opposite; she seemed as though she was comfortable being in Kokiri Forest. She didn't mind the presence of him.

"I hope you didn't do _all_ of the work by yourself," Link said, trying to be as bitter as possible. "My effort grade would be go down if I don't participate _some_how."

Zelda shut the textbook closed as her blue eyes met his. "Actually, I finished the full assignment for today. It was just important research. The Cuccos aren't that hard to study," she explained as she shrugged her shoulders.

Link didn't know if he should feel angry or pleased or even baffled at what was going on. In some ways, he was glad that he didn't have to do any other work. Though, a pang of remorse shot through his body. His body felt cold and hard knowing that he made Zelda do all of the work.

"So, what did you do after you finished the homework assignment?" He suspiciously asked. He wondered if Zelda was just acting nice because she went through his stuff.....

"I watched you sleep," Zelda coyly stated as she noticed Link's eyes slightly widening for a millisecond before retaining their normal shape.

_'This is going well,'_ the princess thought to herself. _'He's already starting to react differently when I treat him like this.'_

Feeling more daring and experimental, she smirked and added, "You looked so adorable, sleeping like a toddler."

He shifted his glance away from the Hylian and hoped she wouldn't notice his cheeks burning bright red. The future queen only smiled more. There was some sort of satisfaction to see Link all flustered and displaying a variety of emotions rather than his normal self. He was different outside of school and when they were alone. This was fascinating Zelda more and more by the minute.

"... Shut up," he retorted.

It was his weakest come back ever. He couldn't think of anything to say. Had she defeated him in this little war they had? No, that couldn't be it. She wasn't smirking in victory, but she was smirking out of some other pleasure. He placed an ear bud back in his left ear as he didn't say anything. He pressed the "Play" button, and continued to listen to the song. For the longest while, they didn't say anything to each other. They only respected each other's presence. In some ways, Link felt as though they understood each other better without saying anything. It was rare to find some comfort in another people's company even though there was no real social interaction. The boy closed his eyes and let the music fill his ears.

"Hey," he heard. He felt a tug on his left sleeve as he opened his eyes again. The face of the pretty, blond was facing at him. The pair of eyes only stared at each other, caught in trying to understand the other pair. But Zelda was the first to smile.

"Look outside," she told him. "It's snowing."

The fifteen year old boy turned his body around to look outside the window. Indeed, Zelda was right. It was snowing.

"It's beautiful," she murmured with another smile.

Link said nothing as he continued to watch the pure, white snow gracefully drift down to the ground. All of the pretty flakes were different from the other, none the same. The silver blanket wrapped the forest. The trees were frosted and hard while there were no visible tracks of life left in the snow. It just snowed with flakes softly piling down. There was still some solace and understanding between the cold, wet snow falling and the Hylians. Another winter, another end of the year. Everything was going to get colder again. Though, Link wondered how this winter change his life. Winter came at the exact right time for him five years ago. The cold stiffened his lonely heart. Yet, he still wondered if things would change. If they did, would it be for the best or worst? He hated change. Change is what fucked him up.

Only Zelda continued to watch Link. He had this pensive, serious look on his face without any visible negativity. She smiled in confidence. It was possible for her to befriend Link. Opportunity was always open if she looked hard enough. She bit the side of her tongue. Even though she didn't like Link at first, she would admit she was fascinated by him. She was aware there was something deep hidden behind him, but she would uncover this mystery. Winter did change surroundings, and perhaps she'd have an effect to help Link change. She wouldn't make him change, but she'd change with him. Change was something good, especially when he had been holding on to something for too long. She knew that Link had been holding on to the past for too long. It was time for him to let go and change. With that idealistic thought in her head, she smiled more and continued to watch the snow fall with the Hero.

* * *

_HAH! You guys didn't think I'd update that soon, now did you? I was really hoping I'd get this out sooner, but work has gotten in the way. … Alright, enough with my pathetic excuses. Again, thank you all for being so patient. By the way, the song Link first listens to is called "Hang Me Up to Dry" by Cold War Kids. The song after that is "Bulls on Parade" by Rage Against the Machine. Please don't try to dissect my music tastes. It's really unpredictable and random._

_I realize that you guys want me to update "soon", but nobody really gives me a time length of what "soon" is. Two weeks? Three weeks? A month? Seriously. It's a vague term. If someone could define me their definition of "soon", that'd be much appreciated. I think if someone gives me a definition, then I can be able to figure out a way to get off my lazy ass and update. Just please do not request one week. That is impossible for me because I'd die of stress, anxiety, and lack of sleep. Legit. Just because it's summer, it doesn't mean that I'm working my butt off to make money. :P_

_As you know, please leave me feedback. Positive, negative, etc. I honestly don't care if you flame this story. It's always fine to show your jackass side to me, remind me of how human I am, and to also kick me off my high horse. With that being said, I hope I can update more frequently!_

_-BKP_


	19. Heaven's a Lie

_A/N: I'm dedicating this chapter to Taylor Swift. I'm not a big Taylor Swift fan; her music is a bit too chick for my tastes. It's my guilty pleasure to say that I'm even listening to "You Belong With Me" right now; I don't like country music that much. But this is fucking ridiculous. I've lost a lot of respect for Kanye West as an artist. But the treatment she received was unnecessary when she accepted her award for "Best Female Video" at the VMA's. _

_But people shouldn't hate Kanye West. It is his opinion that he thought Beyonce should've won, but what he did was a douchebag move. However, he's still a human being. It's the golden rule that you treat others the way you want to be treated no matter what. I hope you guys all realize in this chapter that everyone is flawed and shouldn't judge so quickly. Especially if you don't know the person inside and out._

_Taylor Swift, here's a bit of respect that you deserve. Here, in my lame-ass, high school fan fic, you have the spotlight because you're successful at such a young age. Be proud of yourself! Also, long live the King, MJ!_

* * *

**Heaven's a Lie**

_I need to talk to you. Soon. I mean it.... I hope you and Samus are free on Friday afternoon. We'll meet at my house to talk._

_-Peach_

Zelda's eyes scanned the note three times before she let out a breath of exhaustion. She creased the paper into five times smaller than the original size before shoving it in her skirt pocket. The Hylian discovered the little, white slip during the five minute break at the end of sixth period. The blond only stared at the other princess' messy scrawl in bright-pink ink. It was very strange. What was so urgent about Peach wanting to talk to her? If anything, Peach Toadstool had caught Zelda at the wrong time with her note. Today was fan-fucking-tastic. She had fifty Geometry problems to finish, read an article for World Geography and write a page of feedback on it, study for a Bio quiz next Monday, and complete some exercises for both French and Spanish. Thank the Goddesses, last period of the day was study. After that, the weekend stood brightly ahead.

The hallway continued to buzz, chatter, and yell. The Hylian's eyes shot down towards the end of the hallway, carefully noticing all of her surroundings. The jocks were being jocks and playfully wrestling with one another. The MRL fan club were busy multitasking with walking, talking, and checking their appearance in compact mirrors. The other student smashers were excitedly talking about practicing for the Tournament after school. The girl with pointed ears rested her head against her open, blue locker door and sighed again.

She needed sugar. Sugar was good. Sugar could help her relax a little bit. She grabbed all of the necessary books, binders, and folders and slammed her locker shut. With no time wasted, she rushed towards the school library.

"Sign in, please," Mrs. Goldenseal told her.

Zelda picked up a pen nearby and with two flicks, she scrawled her name in black ink. She half-smiled at the librarian as the latter did the same. The girl mindlessly searched for a place to dump her stuff. Once she found a spot near by the window, she piled her books on top her backpack and exited back to the hallway.

"Hey!" a voice said to her from behind. She spun around.

"Oh, hey Samus."

"What's up? Did you get a note from Peach in your locker about five minutes ago?" The blond asked.

"Yeah, I don't know what she means by it though. It's strange... She never really made an effort to talk to us, and all of a sudden, she wants to talk about something."

"I know, right? It seems as though she's finally acknowledging us as friends. Her attitude was so weird to us last week. Especially when we asked her about her date with Roy," Samus commented coolly.

"Hmmm, I'm guessing her date didn't end so well. Maybe she wants to talk to us about that," Zelda considered as she nodded her head.

"That's what I thought too. By the way, where are you going?" The huntress curiously stated, noticing her missing bag and books.

"I'm headed toward the cafeteria to get a snack from the vending machine. Are you coming into the library? I already put my stuff down at an empty table," Zelda said.

"Nah, I gotta talk to Ms. Tran about my World Geo test grade. I want to go over with it her. I'm guessing it'll take the whole period," the blond explained. She flashed her pearly whites as she raised her waving hand and started to make her way down the hallways. Zelda smiled back for a while until her body turned cold. She forgot that Koji would be driving her back home. Her father would expect her home unless she gave her carriage driver the message that she'd be at Peach's...

"Samus! Shit! I almost forgot to ask you this, but I need a ride to Peach's today! Do you think you could give me one?" Zelda requested. Samus faced her friend, a little bit confounded. Pondering over the idea, she felt her lips curl in a nasty smirk.

"Sure, I'll give you a ride. But just know something very important..." She warned with her eyes slit slyly.

"What?"

"I like to drive _fast_," she replied as her smirk became twice wider.

* * *

The princess clutched her stomach, feeling the strong traces of nausea running through. She swung her leg off the motorcycle as she tried to regain balance. Her head still felt dizzy as her body stumbled. Her brain was trying to figure out how to balance her body. Her other free, right hand flew straight to her mouth, her fingernails clawing at at her left cheek. At the tip of her throat, she tasted the strongest, yet weirdest combination of salt, chocolate, chicken, vomit, potatoes, and milk. The undigested bolus became larger and now was on her tongue. Fighting back the urge to let it out, she swallowed the bolus back down.

"Never again," she vowed after releasing her grasp over her mouth, "will I _ever_ ride on your bike." She clutched her stomach and mouth once more; the food did not want to ride back down her esophagus. The cold wasn't helping either. The painful, cool air made her body freeze in place. The cold only helped her feel more uncomfortable in her surroundings. It was as though it was _urging_ her to blow chunks. Her head was still spinning from the bike ride, but it spun faster due to the cold.

Samus only grinned. "C'mon! You know it was fun!"

Zelda's eyes shot towards Samus, glazed with clear liquid. "Fun? Do you realize that the roads of Nintendo City are covered with ice? Samus, it isn't fall anymore! It's winter! You shouldn't be driving like that! You realize that we could've gotten killed? Or worse, a policeman might've noticed you gone thirty kilometers over the limit and fined you for it!" She hissed. The horrible combination of flavors came to her mouth once more. She fought the urge and swallowed it again.

"Ugh," the princess of Hyrule said before wiping the remaining tears away. "Let's get inside. I'm freezing my butt over here."

The other blond smiled care-freely as though Zelda didn't warn her about anything. She probably didn't even pay attention to what the princess was saying. The Hylian briskly walked towards the large, iron-black doors of Princess Peach's Castle as Samus indifferently followed. With her back in a straight, prompt position, she cleared her throat and grabbed the handle of a large door knocker. After three, long, reverberating knocks, there was no answer. She half-smiled.

"Maybe you should try to the doorbell," Samus suggested, making a gesture to the glowing, yellow button her right. Zelda's thumb mashed against the warm button. She heard a click and the doors creaked open, greeted with a familiar, small servant.

"Ah, yes. Miss Zelda and Miss Samus. My mistress said you'd be coming in today," the servant named Toad told them. He flashed his own fine teeth. He raised his left hand up in the air, "Right this way.

The girls treaded after the short Toad, both trailing behind him like two golden retrievers after their master. As they passed down the long corridor, they passed by many portraits and picture frames hanged on the wall. Most of the people in the frames were pretty obvious: they were Peach's ancestors. The two girls didn't even bother to read the little captions underneath them. It was only Samus who stopped to gaze at one of them after they reached five meters from Peach's bedroom.

The princess was the first to realize that her friend stopped, "What's wrong?"

Samus' emerald eyes studied the picture carefully before pointing at it to Zelda. "Look," she whispered.

The Hylian princess arched an eyebrow before she took a glance at the picture as well. Her mouth fell open. This was a photograph of Peach, Daisy, and the MRL presidents when they were younger. Peach, dressed in a small, frilly rose-pink dress, had her arms swung around Megan Anderson and Caitlin Russell's necks. All of their hairs were shorter compared to days with baby fat lingering on all of their cheeks. But they were all wearing beautiful, elegant dresses. Megan was wearing a periwinkle-blue, beaded dress, whereas Caitlin had a rich, gel-green sleeveless one, Daisy had a usual, sunflower-yellow dress, and Rachel had a fiery, lustful-red skirt flowing down to the floor. All of those girls appeared to be seven at the time the photo was taken; their smiles vibrant and happy and their eyes gleaming with joy.

Zelda and Samus took a moment to gape at the photo. Underneath the photo, their eyes scanned the little, gold letterings: _"Princess Peach's seventh birthday party."_

".... She was friends with the MRL presidents?" Zelda questioned softly, facing Samus. Samus shrugged. The huntress was about to open her mouth to answer, but she was cut off.

"Of course!" a high voice pipped. Samus and Zelda's eyes were now directed at Toad. "Princess Peach had been best friends with Miss Caitlin, Miss Megan, and Miss Rachel for nine years! It wasn't until something happened between the four of them when they all stopped being friends. I think that was the time when Mistress Peach had Master Mario as her boyfriend..."

The two blonds said nothing. Their eyes only flickered a few times, slowly processing the new information. None of them had been aware of Peach even having a boyfriend a few years ago. They wouldn't have expected it from Peach. Not Peach. It was because they met her as shy, unconfident and quiet, they did not think she would be capable of having another lover. In fact, they both assumed Roy was the first boy she dated. A sting of shame and guilt spread through the girls' body. They both misunderstood Peach. It only proved that they knew nothing about her even when trying to be her friend. But that would change very soon.

"Anyway, you'll find Mistress Peach in her room. Please knock before you enter, and I'm sure my Mistress will let you in!" Toad happily instructed. The short servant bowed his whole upper body at a ninety-degree angle before smiling and deserting the two in the hallway.

".... Did you know that she dated that guy?" The Hylian princess rapidly muttered as soon as Toad was out of sight.

"No... Actually, you want to hear something weird?" Samus commented.

"What?"

"I _know_ Mario. He's one of the oldest smashers in the Tournament. He was in Tournament even before Peach."

"Really? What is he like?"

"Ummm..." Samus began to say. Her mind shuffled through the right words to describe the man. "... Short."

"....."

"And Italian. VERY Italian. He speaks with a very strong accent," the huntress explained as she nodded her head. "Though, the more I think about it... the more it does make sense. Mario did seem to be the type who would go out with Peach. He's got that whole "I can rescue you from anywhere" aura around him. And Peach would seem to be the type who'd constantly need saving."

"......."

"But it's really strange. Mario would always try to talk and be friendly towards Peach at the Tournament, and she'd only ignore him or whatever. Maybe she's bitter at him for the break up."

Zelda only said nothing. Her mind was still in a state of slight shock from all of this new information about her other royal friend. She wished she knew more about Princess Peach Toadstool so that she do more for her as a friend. She always wondered what went through the other princess' head. Peach never told them anything about what she was feeling or thinking. It seemed as though she was an emotionless android, only there to accompany of Zelda and Samus.

"Anyway, we should see what's up with Peach," the girl with green eyes impulsively decided. She didn't give Zelda a chance to object as she raised her right fist up and hammered it against the mahogany door of Princess Peach's bedroom.

It seemed like hours before they finally the door swung wide open, "Come in, please..."

Peach's head popped at the side of the door with her bright baby blue eyes hopelessly gazing at the two other blonds. The two friends of Princess Peach remained silent as they both timidly stepped through the door. All three girls stared at one another, wondering what to say to the other. Zelda and Samus examined Peach's appearance despite they saw her earlier that day. Her skin seemed corpse-like pale with her eyes slightly sunken in her sockets. She was a like a ghost of yesterday, floating about and having no where to go. She didn't belong in either Heaven or Hell. Instead, she was cursed and stuck on earth. She was no longer wearing her school uniform. She wore one of those faded, pink dresses that she wore to the Tournament with a bright, blue jewel brooch pinned right at the center. Her usual, gold crown was topped on her head. But, even her royal headdress shone dimmer than before. After a while of deathly silence, Samus decided to speak.

"Yo, Peach. Wassup? What's been going on? Why did you wanna talk to us today after school? I mean, I've got a shitload of homework to do even though it's the weekend... and-"

"I got a letter from Daisy," she cut off. Two pairs of blue and green spheres flickered in a disorientated sense.

"What does-" Samus began to say, but she was cut off by Peach's sharp words once again.

"She sent me a letter telling me to become more confident in myself. I want you guys to read it."

Neither Samus nor Zelda noticed that the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom clutched a spheroid of paper. She unraveled the piece of paper back to a two dimensional shape. Her eyes shot with determination and confidence towards her two best friends before handing over the letter.

"Read it aloud. I want to hear you guys read it – to understand it," she said in a stern, serious voice. Both of her friends knew that the shy, quiet, mouse-like Peach was no longer being silent about her problems. Even though she looked unwell, there was some new wave of boldness held her chin up high. Samus half smiled before snatching the letter out of the princess' left hand. The Hylian Princess leaned close to see the writing and follow along with Samus' words.

".... _Dear Peach, I'm writing you right now because I can never tell you how I feel about this. And when I mean by "this", I mean by the way you currently are. I'm worried for you, girl. I understand that you're depressed. We all get it at some point of our lives. But this is too much. You shouldn't find an excuse to not be your usual lively, bubbly self_," Samus began to read. She paused as she looked up at Peach to see her reaction to what was going on. The Mushroom princess only faced her once more with determined eyes.

"Keep reading."

"... _You should be you. I know you're a strong girl. You're not weak. I will sound harsh when I say this, but you're being very immature right now. You have two lovely girls around you: Samus and Zelda. Those two are willing to be your friends at school. I know you're lonely and you're still hung up over what Megan, Rachel, and Caitlin did to you. I honestly am shocked by the way they've changed as well, but I try to get over it. We must both understand they've changed ever since middle school. We don't know them anymore. They're not like the way they used to be in elementary school. They are not the same girls we grew up with. We both know they've got shit going on in their lives, but we shouldn't use those reasons as an excuse for them to do whatever the hell they want. _

"_For now, screw them. Only if they're willing to change and treat us the way they used to, we should forgive and accept them. But from what I see, it seems that would never happen for a long, long time. So for now, we have to keep on fighting. You skip school. Your mental health is poor. You're not eating or sleeping correctly. You're sick, my dear friend. You're sick because you're depressed. But you must always know that even in the darkest corners, there is always a light. I know it's cliché to say that, but it's true. You can't rely on others to make you happy. We all fall to the floor at some point. The real challenge is how we pick ourselves back up, isn't it?_

Samus' eyes once again darted upwards at Peach who faced the huntress with stern eyes.

"Keep reading," she repeated once again, her eyes focused on both of her two friends.

"_You had the courage to enter the Tournament. I know that you have the fortitude to get yourself out of this situation. I never understood how you have two such loving friends who've stuck by you all this time. Zelda and Samus are there for you for a __**reason**__, Peach. They're not going anywhere. They've proven their loyalty to you. Isn't that enough to trust them now and let them know the truth? I know I can't be there for you anymore now that I'm attending another school... But I wish that you can someday trust them the way you trust me. Peach, I'm not going to be around forever. You know that phrase, "Friends come and go"? It's true in some ways. But I think the friends that mean most to your lives will always come back to you eventually. Whether you meet them after death or twenty years from now, they will come back... _

"_Peach, it's okay to let go of your past. It's okay to let go of some of the people who were closest to you. As long as you grow to become a better and wiser person, you'll be fine. I've been friends with you for ten years, and I promise to love you as a friend no matter how much you change – for better or for worse._

_Love, _

_Daisy"_

Samus' eyes stopped scanning the note because that was the last of Daisy's loopy, cursive handwriting. The other two blond smashers' eyes stared at the shy, royal princess. The two pairs of blue and green eyes only faced the other girl with concern, empathy, and awe at Daisy's words. The Mushroom Kingdom heir only smiled softly with her eyes faced towards the floor. During this whole time, Zelda had been watching Peach the whole time, never taking her eyes off the other princess.

"... I'm such a fool," she said in a clear voice. The other two smashers still noticed there was no hint of shyness in her voice. It was normal, deep, and mildly confident.

Zelda was the first to respond, "No, you're not."

Peach let a laugh ripple across the room. "Really now? I'm glad you don't think so, Zelda. But I think deep down inside I am. I'm scared of my life, the world, and every being on it. For the longest time... I liked staying in this room. It made me safe, secure. I didn't have to deal with the real world and its problems. I like being in my own little world with nothing to distract me. I like the feeling of being naïve, ignorant, and innocent.

"... But the real world isn't like that, now is it? The world forces itself upon you. It's rape. You can't escape it no matter how much you want it to you. Life can be like a nightmare sometimes. I always question myself about why I'm here and what my use is on the earth. We should all be on this earth for a reason, but I can't ever seem to find mine. And I still can't find it even after reading Daisy's letter. But I guess... that doesn't matter for now. I'm only fifteen. I shouldn't find my reason to live just yet," she explained slowly as her eyes met both Samus and Zelda's.

".... I want the both of you to finally understand me. I'm so selfish, yet unselfish at the same time. I say nothing to you two, letting you know nothing about my past. But you two have shown more concern and care for me than I have for you. It's time for me to repay everything you've done. I feel like the way I am right now is because of my past. And I want you... both of you... to just listen and try to understand. Please try to understand where I'm coming from and try to feel the same pain I have felt. If you guys can do this, I'll trust you both."

The Hylian faced the huntress. Both of them had been anxious this whole time to hear Peach's story at last. The huntress' eyes were filled with the same amount of curiosity as the Hylian. Samus took a while to swallow her own saliva before nodding her head at Zelda.

"Go on. Tell us your story," Zelda told Peach, facing back at her.

Princess Peach's eyes shifted to the right towards the floor. She sucked in a breath of air, "Well... Nine years ago, I met Caitlin, Megan, Rachel, and Daisy in elementary school. It's funny.... Megan actually once saved me from being bullied back then. That's how we became friends. She saved me. When she introduced me to everyone else in her group, we all became inseparable. For nine years, we were all tight and confided in each other. We all confided in each other for support, love, and care..."

Her voice trailed off as she closed her eyes shut. Her mind shuffled through all of those happy images of five girls laughing, smiling, and enjoying each other's presence over the nine years. The smiles on Megan's, Rachel's, and Caitlin's faces were no longer the same. Their smiles and laughs were both sinister than most. How could have things stopped the way they did?

"... Two years ago," Peach began. "... I had my first boyfriend, Mario. He and I go back from a while. I've known him just as long as I know Megan, Rachel, and Caitlin. I dated him for six months. However, during that time I didn't realize that I was hurting someone else. It turns out... Megan also had a slight crush on Mario. She would never admit it because she said that Mario was never her type. But I guess I should've noticed it earlier. Megan would always become tense whenever he was around. She'd get flustered when Mario would be friendly towards her.

"... Though, shortly Mario and I broke up. It wasn't because we knew of Megan's secret affections for him. It was because we were both growing up and maturing differently. We realized it would never work out."

The two blond smashers noticed the hasty shifting of the bright blue eyes from Peach as she sighed deeply. She looked at the floor once more, forcing a slight smile. The two continued to say nothing; Peach would explain more.

"I guess Megan was upset that I broke up with Mario. She didn't talk to me for a bit during the summer Mario and I broke up, but I assumed it was also because she had some tough stuff going on. I also thought it may have been because Mario would always hang out with my circle of friends. Megan may have figured that since Mario broke up with me, he didn't want to hang out with anyone from my group of friends anymore.

"But no, that new school year back... I noticed something extremely different in Megan's behavior. She'd say something insulting jokingly and when I'd laugh it off, she'd immediately add that she wasn't joking in the first place. It was bizarre. Slowly, both Caitlin and Rachel started to act that way too. But it'd always be confusing. Because sometimes either Rachel and Caitlin would still act normal and nice. One or both of them would agree that Megan was acting weird. I could tell them anything that was on my mind and I still trusted them. The next day, they'd just turn their back on me and hang out with Megan when I invited them over. They'd also tell everything I told them to Megan. And pretty soon, they just all started acting mean. They bullied me the way they do now. It was as though they hated me from the start," the nervous, always shy princess explained as she closed her eyes. Tears filled her eyes when she opened them up again. She tried her best to smile, but her voice wavered:

"I just don't understand why they've stopped being friends with me. I know I should get over it, but part of me doesn't want to get over because I have such a long, loving history with them. I know it sounds cheesy, but it's true. I've been through so much with them and I don't know if I did anything wrong that upset them. I've asked them if I ever did do anything wrong, but they've said I should know what I did..."

As the other girl let more tears rain slide her cheeks, Princess Zelda's heart sank down in empathy for Peach. The idea of three of your best friends all turning against you was heartbreaking and painful. She could imagine the frustration, insecurity, paranoia, loneliness, and sadness in the other girl's life. Peach's mind would be tormented by the illusion of her three friends being her friends when they were her enemies at the same time. How restless Peach must've been to keep on wondering what her "friends" actually cared for her. She could imagine the psychological damage Peach wallowed in for months.

However, Samus only clenched her teeth before speaking, "Why do you care so much? You're wasting your time over thinking about this. You shouldn't give a damn what they think. Those bitches were never your friends at all."

That stopped Peach's further tears. ".... What do you mean by that, _Samus_?" Her voice filled more with rage rather than curiosity. Zelda's mind and body froze as she knew the situation was going to turn ugly. She noticed the other princess' becoming slightly furious as there was a small fire starting to ignite in her once bright blue eyes.

The blond with cold, stern green eyes paused before continuing: "What have they done for you now? Nothing. If they were your _real_ friends, they would still be with you. Obviously, they don't. You should get over it."

In Zelda's mind, she felt herself wanting to shake her head at the other girl. Samus really wasn't careful with the words she had said.

_'She should really be more considerate of Peach's feelings. She was friends with them for __**nine**__ years! That's about the same time I've been friends with Malon, and we've been inseparable.__ Samus, you should realize that Peach is taking her time to get out of her shell. Ugh, this isn't helping her at all! Samus, you shouldn't tell her what to do! You should help her realize what to do!' _Zelda thought.

"You," Peach began slowly and as coolly as possible, "shouldn't act as though you've known everything about me, Samus."

"... It disgusts me to see you tolerated all of that treatment they did to you during middle school. You're not strong enough to break away from them," she continued. Peach's eyes became slits as she balled her hands in fists.

"You think I liked it? Do you _really_ think that, Samus? You think I still loyally hung around them and made myself seem like a dog?"

"Why do you still give a shit? These girls don't even understand what it's like to be in pain."

"You don't know that!" Peach shouted. It was obvious to Zelda that Peach had let go. Her anger was gushing out like a river released from a dam.

"Megan has to live with her rich-ass step-mother and her father! They neglect her! They don't give her any time of day. Her father especially! He works all day and comes home late at nights. The only conversations they have is about her schoolwork and how she's going to take his place as a government official! Caitlin has been sexually abused by one of her first cousins ever since she was six. He comes to visit her on vacation breaks and makes her have sex with him. Do you notice the dark dots on her back in the locker rooms? She tries to use make up, but those are cigarette burns! Her cousin takes out a cigarette butt by using her back as an ashtray. And Rachel? Rachel had her biological father walk out on her family when she was four. Her mother is fighting breast cancer and taking care of her two older sisters and her all by herself! Her family's in debt!

"And you, Samus, judge them by their actions! You think you're better than they are because you think you know them! You don't! You only know their superficial appearance and actions! Deep down, they all _loved_ me as a friend! I know they did! You have no idea how much support and love I've given them! You don't understand that they did the same for me as well! Maybe this is why you're stuck with a fool like me is because you don't understand anything I feel, Samus! You think you've always known me since eighth grade? Well, you're now wrong because this is the real me!" Peach shrieked before breathing heavily.

The other two girls were speechless at Peach's outburst. Samus's mind was blank in both confusion and shock. Her body was frozen by every loud word pronounced from Peach's mouth. It was as though every word hit her hard with surprise and shame. Zelda was also stunned by Peach's information about the MRL fan club presidents. They all appeared to be so normal, yet they too were suffering from problems. They too were struggling with harder, inescapable problems. Compared to most teenagers, their problems were swallowing them whole where they couldn't find a way out. Finally, both Samus and Zelda felt a sense of empathy for those girls and Peach. The feeling of being suffocated. It was torture, a battle. All of those problems the MRL fan club presidents faced were not something that had a simple solution; it was all a matter of time for survival.

There was a tint of liquid silver at the bottom lids of Peach's eyes. Her body was shaking as she looked at them with large, fearful, insecure eyes. "I've tried so hard to pretend to be happy. But I can't. I try to lie to myself. I tell myself everyday that one day.... Megan, Rachel, and Caitlin will turn around, realize their actions, and apologize about them. I hope that one day they treat me just like another human again. That's why I joined the Tournament. That's my one wish. I shouldn't have told you that, but it's what I truly desire," Peach explained as she closed her eyes. A drop of her lingering past slithered down to the tip of her nose and fell to the ground. She sniffled.

"Peach," Zelda began to say in an understanding voice, but she was cut off by Samus.

".... I can't forgive those three for what they did to you. In fact, I feel a stronger grudge for them now that I knew that they were once your best friends. That's something I'll confess. I don't wanna admit this, but you're right. I don't know Anderson, Russell, and Livingston at all. I know nothing of their private lives. I dunno know how they treated you when you guys were all friends. But what I do know is that you don't deserved to be treated the way you are right now. Maybe everything you wish for will come true. Maybe they'll someday continue to be your friend. But know that as of now, they're you're enemies. You can't change what they think of you," Samus said.

"I know..." Peach replied with her head hung down towards the ground. Her eyes were still filled with the sad loneliness at the mention of her once best friends.

"Peach," Zelda finally cut in. "Samus is right in some ways. Your friends aren't being themselves by treating you like that. I can't believe that they dropped you as a friend like that even after all of those years... but they're different. I understand that you still want to live in the past, but present is the only way to go. I feel ashamed. Samus and I thought we understood you, but we clearly don't. In some ways, it's refreshing because it shows that people are complex and wondrous beings. You shouldn't let your downfall to make you weaker; you have it make you stronger. You don't need to hide behind us all the time. It's okay to be yourself. I promise that Samus and I will accept you no matter what.... I promise. We'll love you for you being you. You can't die, but once."

Princess Zelda genuinely smiled, revealing all forty-two, straight white teeth as Samus also smirked. Peach faced them in wonder as she let out a small giggle. She shyly looked down at her feet before returning a glance with a bright smile. For the first time, the other two smashers saw the pink princess' real smile. Her face was lively with a beautiful smile. They both concluded that they preferred a vivacious Peach rather than the shy one with her face shining in happiness.

"So you promise to accept me no matter what?" She questioned slowly.

Samus nodded confidently, "Absolutely! There's no need to hide what you're really like now, Peach!"

Another smile spread across Peach's face, except this one was more sinister... She was going to have with fun of her two, new friends...

* * *

"You're coming shoe shopping with me tonight, Samus!" Peach declared happily two weeks later at lunch. The cafeteria continued to buzz and chatter while the trio of girls sat at their normal table. Samus let her head fall straight on the surface of the cafeteria table.

"What!?" Samus moaned as she brought her head back up. "That's the fifth time this week! Don't you have enough shoes? I told you! I don't do shoe shopping! Why don't you just take Zelda?!"

"I _am_ taking Zelda. But it's no fun when it's just Zelda and I," Peach said innocently as her eyes drifted across the table to Zelda. The Hylian only smirked as Peach gave her a wink. "We need you because we're going to help you embrace your inner femininity!"

"WHAT?! I have no inner femininity!" Samus reported as she ground her teeth. "Why me? Why do you always want to bring me along? I'm boring when it comes to shopping."

"But but but!" Peach said in a squeaky voice. "You could do _so_ much with your hair and clothes! You've got a wonderful figure, Samus. Oh, if you'd just let me give you a makeover, I could have boys all over you like a piece of meat."

"Thanks, but no thanks. I don't want to be treated like a piece of meat," Samus blandly stated as she scissored her plastic knife on her plate.

"Speaking of meat, why are you eating red meat, Samus?" Zelda questioned, noting the blood spilling out of the medium rare cooked steak.

"Hn?" Samus replied as she ripped a piece of beef from her fork. She vigorously chewed the piece like a wolf feasting on its dinner. She swallowed, "That's because I'm hating that "organic, nutritional stuff" that Peach has been trying to get me to eat. That and her vitamins."

"That's because you're not eating correctly, Samus! I'm surprised to see that you're so buff! You need more fruits and vegetables in your body! Oh, and vitamins can do wonders for you! They help you get more vitamin D compared to most sources. Samus, you eat like a man rather than a real woman! I'm not a big fan of red meat, but when I do have it... I make sure there's no _blood_ in it!" Peach hissed. "And why is it that you don't wear skirts? Why do you insist you so much to wear _boy pants_, Samus? I'm not going to say you're never going to have a boyfriend because I know about you and Captain Douglas Falcon..."

Samus stopped chewing for a second as she felt a wave of negative emotions swarm over her.

"Don't say that name," she warned with a deep voice.

"What?"

"Don't.... say that name ever again," Samus declared once again as she set her plastic fork down on her blue, lunch tray. She inhaled deeply through her nose. Both Peach and Zelda faced each other blankly.

"... Alright. I don't see what the big deal is though."

The three said nothing for a while as Samus calmly put more blood-covered steak in her mouth. The cafeteria was still loud with everyone else conversing.

".... You're still coming with us for shoe shopping," a voice reported.

Samus rolled her eyes, "No fucking way. I don't like heels."

"Why nooooooooottt?" Peach asked in a whiny voice. She faced Zelda and said sternly, "Zelda, help me out. Tell Samus she'd be a party pooper if she doesn't come shopping with us. Help me convince her to come shoe shopping. It's going to be a wonderful, Friday, winter night. Who wouldn't want to go shopping for some cute heels or sexy boots?"

"What's in it for me?" Zelda asked slyly, still smirking. She liked being able to bargain with the newly confident and bubbly princess. The other princess pressed her right fingertip over her lips, thinking over it deeply.

"... I'll buy you three pairs of whatever shoes you choose."

"Deal!" Zelda replied happily as she placed her right hand in front of Peach to shake. Her head turned towards Samus who was still devouring her lunch. The princess' face slightly winced at the horrendous sight. "Samus, you're coming with us whether you like it or not."

"Yaaaaaaay!" Peach said excitedly, clapping her hands.

Samus glared at them with a piece of beef hanging off the corner of her mouth. "Wut?" She demanded with her mouth full. The other two blondes only smirked at the same time.

"My, my. Aren't you guys having fun? May I sit here?" a new voice asked from behind.

All three of them stiffened their bodies before turning around. They recognized that deep voice. With his flaming red hair, eager blue eyes, holding up his own blue tray, and a cocky smile, they found themselves facing Roy Flores again.

* * *

_Whoo! Did you guys enjoy the chapter? I've been a lazy ass. I'll confess it. I'll also confess one other thing: reviews actually do inspire me more to write. I'm going to sound like a complete n00b when I say this, but please review. I've realized that I'd rather be honest with my readers rather than make excuses and be "professional". I also like getting feedback. Reviews are the only way for me to hear what you think of what I write. I'd like to hear everyone's opinions rather than sitting here in the dark, clueless and wondering if people will like the next chapter. :P_

_-BKP_

_P.S. I hope I didn't offend anyone's religion with the chapter title. It's a song title from the band Lacuna Coil. They band explained that when they referred to "heaven", they meant "heaven" as in "paradise, a state of supreme happiness, or a perfect life"._


	20. Almost Easy

**Almost Easy**

Three pairs of eyes emptily stared at the redhead's request. It had been over four weeks since Roy Flores joined them. His energetic, welcoming smile faltered once he saw that the girls did not utter a word. The redhead could swear nervousness and paranoia punched his stomach a thousand times. In his mind, he skittered through ideas of whether he should wait for their answer or forget about it and leave the trio of girls be. He wanted the coward's way out. Instead, he shifted his eyes down toward the ground, prepared for the worst. At the same moment, Zelda and Samus' eyes drifted at Peach. Her answer was important because it was what she wanted.

It only had been two weeks since Peach felt fully comfortable and open around the two girls. During those two weeks, Peach spilled the whole details of Roy and her date. While Samus found more reasons to hate Roy, it was only Zelda who offered a different interpretation. She suggested that perhaps Roy was jittery and didn't know what to say. He might've gotten caught up with the demanding questions so he blurted out what was on his mind, but it came out wrong. It was hard to maintain a balanced view of the world, but it was part of growing up.

"... Well, Peach? What's your answer? Is he going to sit with us or not?" Samus demanded, breaking the silence.

Peach's eyes gazed into Roy's dark blue eyes. She said they'd continue to be friends, but they rarely even spoke to each other other than from working on the Bio project. It was so... bland – so professional and business like. She hated that. It reminded her that there was something more to the relationship she had with Roy Flores. It left her hanging, and tempted to start a conversation with him.

She blinked a few times, trying to sort out what she should do. Logic told her to stay away from him so she would never be hurt by him ever again. But her feelings were telling her to have him sit down and talk again like nothing had happened between them. Though, she tried to logic her feelings into trying to make herself hate him. But she just couldn't...

"... Go ahead and sit down, Roy," she told him clearly.

His head raised slightly upwards as he gave her hopeful look. A smile traced upwards in his facial features, happiness etched everywhere from the way he straightened his posture to his eyes. He happily pulled out a chair and sat himself down. He set his lunch tray down as he smiled again at Peach. The princess of the Mushroom Kingdom returned his smile with a shy one. She couldn't tell herself what to feel because emotions were always irrational. She couldn't hold a grudge or stay mad at something silly. Life was too short. The two started up a small conversation about what was going on. After a while, chattering came from Samus and Zelda as well. Even Samus "playfully" punched Roy's upper arm. But Roy was sure that a big, blue and purple bruise would appear in the next twenty-four hours.

* * *

Meanwhile, a pair of violet eyes barely glared at the table with three girls and a redhead. Envy, jealously, insecurity, and fury could be detected from across the cafeteria as the violet eyes continually gawked at the image before it. This person was not pleased about Roy's new friends.

"... Link, I hate Roy. He deserted me and left me to die in fifteen minutes for that horrid, World Geo test!"

The heroic Hylian glanced up from his lunch food to the prince of Altea. He inhaled sharply, impatient with the smasher's behavior. "Marth, you don't have a solid, good reason to hate Roy. You can handle yourself on your own. You don't need Roy right now. Goddesses, you're acting like a five-year old without his mommy."

"But I want him back!" Marth pouted stubbornly. The Hero of Time sharply sucked some air. Marth was being extremely inconsiderate; his non-stop, clingy behavior was becoming too much for today. His rose-pink, bottom lip looked swelled when he held it out as he pretended to whimper like a puppy.

The pointed-ear teen decided to speak up, "Well, if you want him back, why don't you just get him back?"

Marth's eyes darted at Link's face as though he said something brilliant. However, the thought took him a while to process as he carefully considered the idea: "... Hmmm... But you must come with meeeee!"

Link sighed, "Why?"

"Because it'll be fun! We must storm the castle together to reunite the Three Musketeers!" Marth exclaimed wildly. The Hylian glared at the other boy at his barbaric imagination.

"How so? I thought you didn't like Aran and her friends. You're not going to be able to tolerate her for five minutes. It'd be a miracle if you talked to her for ten minutes," Link pointed out.

"... We must get Roy anyway!" Marth quickly retorted. He tried to hide the pinkness in his cheeks: his developing fascination about the huntress and how she challenged his thoughts. Briskly standing up as though he was doing something very important, he stared at the Hero of Time for half a minute. The Hero said nothing.

"... What?" Link finally demanded, unsure and a bit freaked out of what the Altean planned to do.

"... You... will... come... with... me." Marth replied very sternly. His violet eyes stared deeply into the Hylian's as though he was hungry for human contact.

"I don't swing that way," Link replied as he shifted his eyes from one corner of the cafeteria to the other.

"No! Not like that!" The bluehead almost screamed furiously. His azure eyebrows knitted in his brow before seizing Link's left hand. "Stand."

Link's body wouldn't budge; he was heavy and still as though he was a Goron wrestler. Even so, Marth mustered up all of his strength to force the Hylian up. After the third attempt, he succeeded. Similar to a colt attempting to stand on its own for the first time, Link clumsily stumbled over a table leg.

"Ow," the boy said after his knee collided against the table.

"Off we go!"

* * *

"... So the other day, I read this really poor-written story online called "My Immortal". It had horrible grammatical errors, spelling, and bad characterization. The authoress seemed to really like to separate people as either: goths, preps, or posers. I wanted to gouge my eyes out with a -"

"Yo, what's up, yo?" Marth intervened, cutting off Samus' spiel. The trio of girls and the redhead all turned their heads at the prince. The prince wished to be perceived as surprisingly chill by his word choice.

"Ummm... Hi, Marth... Nothing much? We're just listening to Samus telling us a story." Roy explained slowly, nervous about what might happen next. Samus' eyes fixed on the other flirtatious swordsman, annoyed by his rude, inconsiderate behavior.

"Hey, dude. Don't talk all slow on me like that. It's not like I'm a retard," the prince said.

Link coughed, "Kalacccck... Yes, you are... Kalaaaccckkk..." He covered his mouth with his fist. The trio of blonds giggled like five-year-olds.

Roy smiled, "So what did you want, Marthie boy? Let me guess... You wanted me to help you on your World Geo studying because you're freaking out about it."

"That's it!" Marth grinned back as he snapped his fingers. He pointed his fingers at him like he was holding too pistols at him. "Roy, you have a gift of telepathy."

The Pheraen smasher's laugh rippled throughout the cafeteria, echoing back to the six smashers. "No, I don't, Marth. I just know you so well just like Link," he replied as he made an acknowledging nod towards the Hylian. The Hylian grinned and nodded back.

"Alright, get your textbook and notes out. You're going to need it if you want to pass Ms. Tran's class," Roy instructed. The Altean cracked open his textbook; he flipped through his scrawly notes in his binder while taking out a pen. "You have to study the notes about the Soviet Union and Germany, especially about the Berlin Wall. It's very important stuff that Ms. Tran is going to test us on. I created a review sheet. Here, I made some extra copies because I know you can't pass a course without them." The boy said as he whipped out a five-page packet of organized notes.

"Thank you, Roy!" Marth exclaimed as he happily mauled the other swordsman with a hug. "I _love_ you."

"Yes yes, I know, Marth. Now get off me before I die of you choking me to death."

Marth released his grasp and laughed, slightly blushing. " Ahah. Sorry about that."

"Study," the redhead instructed. "If you want to maintain your GPA, you better study."

"Yeah, I know. But that shouldn't stop me from multitasking, right?" Marth said as he smiled innocently with his book open for only the ceiling to read. Before Roy could retort back with logical reasoning, Marth wanted to talk. "So I heard all of you guys passed the interview. Congrats. Do you guys all plan to attend the welcoming party?"

"I am," Zelda answered slowly, keeping a watchful eye on Link. She flashed her best smile as the other Hyrulean did his best to ignore it. Marth raised an eyebrow to the way Zelda acted towards his friend. Overly friendly much? Most girls would stare at Link with a hint of lust or infatuation, hinting at their desires for his attention. However, Zelda appeared to want something more than just attention for a romantic interest. It seemed she wanted respect or kindness or...

"Hmmm... I'm thinking about going, but I may have a doctor's appointment on that day," Peach commented with the tip of her finger on her bottom lip.

"I'm up for it. I love getting a free dinner!" Samus enthusiastically said.

"Mmm. This all sounds exciting. How about you, Roy and Link?" Marth asked.

Link had been staring off into space. His eyes were cold and unfeeling while he pretended he wasn't part of the conversation.

"Yeah, I plan to go." Roy answered. Link still said nothing.

"Liiiinkkkk... Answer me, boy! I'll give ya a treat if you do so!" Marth playfully said.

Link shot him a glare as he stoically replied, "I'll go."

* * *

Orientation glowed with welcoming and excitement. The dinner party settled at a banquet hall with a high ceiling in the west wing of the mansion. Silver lights glistened from crystal chandeliers while the walls were painted a light blue, a reflection of winter. Everything was set up carefully; blue and white balloons were in every corner of the room. Fresh mixes of delphiniums, white roses, lilies, and blue hydrangea made up beautiful bouquets of every table's centerpiece. White tablecloths cover every round, six person table available. A small, wooden podium was located in the front of the room. This orientation dinner would be classy, but not over the top or gaudy. Zelda's dropped slightly, in awe, when she stepped in.

"This is amazing, don't you think?" She asked Samus. Dressed in a small, white, satin dress with thin crossing straps on her back. The dress cut before her knees. The princess felt proud she was a smasher. Accompanied with white flats, the princess strolled as gracefully as she could with her arm hung around her friend's. Her silver bangles chimed as she pulled Samus along to move forward.

"Hmmm... It looks good. It's a little bit better than last year. Orientation dinner and party is alright. It's very casual and low-key. But they sometimes over do themselves with the decorations," Samus commented bitterly. Samus, on the other hand, wore a nice, crimson, glittery top which was a V-neck and three fourths lengths sleeves along with black pants and plain, dress shoes.

"Oh hush, Sammie! You never appreciate a good design to a party! I think this is a million times better compared to last year. They've got such nice flowers for the centerpieces! I wonder who arranged those flowers because they look marvelous!" Peach said.

The princess of the Mushroom Kingdom had gone all out with her appearance. She dressed in a cute, soft rose pink, strapless dress made out of some gauzy like fabric. The skirt a few layers, and a nice, matching pink, velvet sash wrapped around the blonde's small waist. Four inch, silver strappy shoes had Peach's height to be dominating and demanding. With a diamond, tear drop shaped necklace and matching earrings, her jewelry glittered all around like fairy dust.

Samus only half smiled. "Well, I'm not a fan with just sitting around and eating fancy food. It's awkward when you're stuck at a table you don't know."

"Let's just all hope we're at the same table then!" Peach said happily as Samus shifted her eyes upwards, annoyed. The princess strode over toward the seating chart as her two other blond friends trailed along. "Okay... So let's see. Aran, Samus. Ooh. Table eight. That's good. Next, Harkinian, Zelda. Table eight! Great! You guys are together. Now me... Toadstool, Peach. Table... EIGHT! Yes! We're all together!"

"Whoot. Do you know who else are the three peeps who are at our table?" Samus asked monotonously.

"That would be us," a voice interjected. The three spun around. A pair of violet eyes contained a smug look. Prince Marth of Altea stood there, broodingly, in a midnight-blue, button-up, short-sleeved shirt. A silk, black tie hung from the collar of his shirt. A brown, single strapped bracelet snaked around his wrist with black, formal slacks. "What's up, lay-dees?"

Samus tried not to roll her eyes or groan. "Nothing if you don't get your mind out of the gutter and leave me alone," she muttered to herself softly. She regretted saying it though once she noticed Marth's downcast eyes and grim smile.

"You girls look lovely today," Roy said. He himself was dressed in a nice, crimson shirt with a silver tie. He also wore dark pants, but his seemed to be made of high quality material compared to Marth's.

Peach grinned as she gave the redhead a confident stare. The other smasher tried to look away, but he found that he couldn't turn his head away from her. He knew what she was doing. She was giving him a cute, yet alluring look where Roy couldn't resist it. He found her to be adorable. He wished to take her alone and maybe just-... But he cleared his throat to clear the thoughts out of his head.

"Anyway..." He began to comment when he realized he was lost with words for a moment. Never in Roy's life had someone distracted him by one look to have him loose his train of thought.

"Hey, Link! How are you doing?" Zelda said, trying to keep the conversation going and address the Hylian.

The Hero of Time stoically gazed at her, unfazed and unenthusiastic about everything. He down casted his eyes to the floor. He did not wish to speak.

"Fine."

Zelda frowned. _'Maybe I should stop being so pushy and forceful to get him to talk. Maybe... He'll come to me if I just give him space and respect while I try not to be intrusive,'_ she thought.

Though, she happily shrugged off her plans because she wished to enjoy her evening whether or not it consisted of Link. She faced Peach, chatting about the latest gossip on the runway in Nintendo City. Soon enough, the blondes were in their own little world about the art of clothes. Samus, on the other hand, found her eyes landing at the sight of Prince Marth of Altea. She noticed the plastic, glass-shaped cup in his hand filled with apple juice as he conversed deeply with Roy. She noticed his light, pale skin on his face. She noticed the set structure of his jaw and the color of his eyes. She herself wondered why she stared at him so much. She was stock still with no words coming to her mind. Marth noticed her gaze, and gave her a questioning, intimidated look. Her eyes widened as she darted her eyes away, ashamed and embarrassed at her gawking. Luckily for her, the Master Hand entered the room.

He floated slowly in, carefully observing everyone in the room. Once he was sure all of the smashers was here, he positioned himself more upright, showing he was pleased with how his night was going. As he made his way to the podium, all of the smashers slowly noticed the presence of the hand. A strange sense of silence crept through the room, hushing all of the smashers from their lively chats.

When the Master Hand finally reached his destination, he spoke: "Welcome all to the Super Smash Brothers Orientation! I am delighted to see you all could make this traditional banquet. Everyone in the Tournament should get to know each other so we can all smash on friendly terms with no judgments, ill will, or loathing. Nobody from the Super Smash Brothers should discriminate each other of sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or age. Anyone who violates these rules will be suspended from the Tournament for four weeks. Now, I hope you all enjoy your evening! Have a fine dinner and converse with the others! I shall be in my office if anyone needs me."

The Master Hand floated slowly away from the podium. He left the room so quickly it was as though he was a ghost. Silence crept in the room with most of the smashers wondering how to handle the situation. Fox McCloud began to clap to keep from the awkwardness and be polite. While most of the smashers meekly clapped as well, Zelda raised an eyebrow at the hand's behavior. It was quite odd that a hand would leave so suddenly, and avoid the social event. She brushed it off because she didn't want her night to go wasted.

* * *

"So we have assigned seating right here? This is fucking BULLSHIT!" Samus Aran said with the bitter most scorn.

Peach only smiled and cheerfully said, "Hey, it's just like a wedding! We have to mix and mingle with the other people in our table of six."

"Yeah, but why did I have to get stuck with _him_?" Samus asked, pointing at her all-time favorite blue head scarfing down his food.

"Ay! 'Un 'uk ah ee 'ike 'atuh!" He grunted through his food.

"Excuse me, but I don't speak douchebaganese."

Marth spat out his food on his plate as most smashers at his table gave him a funny look. With a glare, "I said, 'Don't look at me like that!"

The two other princesses smiled meekly at each other. The blonde and bluehead were at it again. The two girls wondered why Samus and Marth were in the same room. The mature (and wise) thing to do would be to simply ignore each other or just leave the room hastily. Yet, there was something odd the princesses noticed about the two. It appeared they _liked_ arguing with each other. But it was impossible; Samus would deny any romantic feelings for Marth and vice versa. Then again, maybe Samus wasn't always honest with how she felt.

Peach, however, shrugged the thought off quickly as she glanced over at Roy Flores and grinned shyly. Once the redhead was aware of the female staring at him, he himself returned the same warmness with a smile of his own. There was a shot of joy which soared in Peach's chest, making it extremely difficult for her to control. She flushed as she darted her eyes back to the flat surface of the table. The future Queen of Hyrule stared at the Hero of Time as she carefully noted the way he sipped his water glass. His stern face with two slits above his nose glared at almost everything in sight. The truth was Link Wright wanted to be home.

Meanwhile, Peach's embarrassment of staring at Flores was cut off when Samus threatened to castrate Marth. She couldn't take it anymore, "Give it a fucking rest, will you?" The arguing duo stopped in shock to hear Peach using foul language for the first time. Peach rolled her eyes.

"Seriously, we're at orientation and the least thing you could do is just get along rather than act like five-year-olds. I remind you, this is a Tournament Orientation and not a playground. Do us all a favor and just get some food right now so I can enjoy my night in peace."

The arguing duo's mouths were dry in shock and their brains could not articulate any words. Once again, Peach always surprised them with her new found voice. The bounty huntress, not knowing what to exactly do, could think of only one way to respond:

"Fine," she said bitterly. With that said, she silently got up from her seat and headed towards the buffet table.

Marth, on the other hand, wasn't sure either of what to do. Instead, he whipped out his cellphone and pretended to be playing games on it so he wouldn't interact with anyone or stir up Peach's temper again. While the Mushroom Kingdom princess stared intensely at the other smashers, Roy Flores only smiled meekly.

"Peach," he said softly. She whipped around and grinned. "I want to talk to you in private." She gave him a funny look as Roy still smiled at her. "Let's go to one of the lounge rooms. I want to go there."

The blonde princess only nodded. "I'm going to get myself a drink before we go. Do you need anything?"

The redhead smiled, "Nope. I've got my cup of water. I just need to talk to you in private."

The princess shyly grinned back as she nervously turned around and headed towards the drinks table. In her chest, her heart was ramming against her ribcage, feeling as though it would never rest. She poured herself a drink, but her hand shook slightly as splatters of punch juice stained the white tablecloth. Peach took a deep breath. She had to remain her composure and not get too excited.

She flashed Roy a bright smile with determined eyes staring straight into his own. Roy froze. She looked so sweet, cute, and carefree with the way she looked at him. He never thought one glance could throw him off. "Uhhh... This way," he said as he directed her outside of the room.

Princess Peach continued to walk confidently in silver stilettos, having them click loudly on the floor. While most of the males in the room watched her, Peach ignored them. She strutted her body flawlessly in those thin heels as Roy Flores tailed along.

"Let's turn left here." He said as she followed. He led her into a cozy, warmly-lit room with two brown couches and coffee tables, complete with a huge, flat-screen TV. He gestured his hand towards one of the couches. "Please, have a seat."

Peach did as she was told. She smoothed her skirt of her dress and sat down comfortably. Roy inhaled sharply as he took a sip of his water. He gulped.

"Peach, I've been thinking about that date we first had... And well, I know it wasn't the best way to start off things. For example, I made you upset, I think the date we had was too formal, and I feel like I just approached everything the wrong way. For all of those mistakes, I sincerely apologize. I acted like an idiot. When you asked me why I wanted to date you on our first date, I gave you the wrong answer. I don't think you're just "hot". I think you're more than that. For some reason, I feel as though I see that more than most people in our class. I just don't sometimes don't know what I'm doing when I'm around you because... Well, the truth is... I really like you."

That was when his bright blue eyes looked at her. Peach also looked up at him for a moment: breathless, happy, yet also excited. She quickly looked down at her cup of fruit punch. She smiled softly, taking another sip from her cup. Roy faced back into the front of the room, staring off into the distance. He didn't say anything.

"I see," she tried to say very seriously. Inside, she couldn't help smiling. Roy, on the other hand, felt as though he was numb. He didn't know what to do. Did she feel the same way?

"I don't want to force anything on you. I understand if you're not ready for some things, and I'm a fool if I can believe that I can just dive into a relationship without considering how you feel. I know I kissed you that night, but... I sometimes worried if I acted too fast. If you don't want to be with me, I understand," he went on, noticing Peach was still and silent like a rock.

Silence crept into the room, leaving Roy Flores anxious and nervous as ever. His whole body felt as though it was shaking. His whole world felt like it was completely empty and cold. Maybe he did fuck things up. He knew things didn't go the way he always wanted them to. But he what he wouldn't give to spend his time with Peach Toadstool? A warm hand touched his shoulder. He looked up, and he saw a gentle face smile at him.

"Roy, I know you think I'm bitter from that time you said you only wanted to date me because you thought I was hot. Of course, I find that a little bit offensive because I look at the term "hot" as "I-wanna-just-bang-you-and-that's-it". I don't think you implied that. It's sometimes hard to believe someone when he does one thing, but says another. I understand now that you've cleared it up. I agree with you about taking things slow. I'll confess, I may not be ready for some things yet," Peach began to say.

"So am I!" Roy exclaimed. "I want to be honest with you right now. I'm struggling to get over someone."

Peach's heart plummeted to her stomach. "Is that so?" She said, hiding all of the disappointment and sadness in her voice.

"Yes, but I know I like you. So why not give things a shot?"

Peach smiled. She tried her best to forget that there was once another girl who had Roy's heart. She wondered what she must've been like though... Who knows if she was incredibly pretty? Or intelligent? Or perhaps she had a sweet personality. Or maybe she had a fiery personality. Or perhaps she could act sexy like a model on the runway, and have men gawk at her with once glance...

"So I'm taking that as a yes?" He asked, snapping the Princess out of her thoughts.

"Yes!" She blurted out, not realizing how loud she said that. She quickly covered her mouth with her hand as if she could hide her embarrassment and her words. She could feel her cheeks growing hotter and hotter, and her heart pounded in her chest because it was the only thing that she could hear.

Roy laughed. "It's okay. You're probably just as excited as I am."

Peach giggled a little bit as well. "I confess, I am. But I want you to realize something before we start this. I'm not the type of girl who beats around the bush or plays any games. When you're with me, you're with me. I want someone who's honest and who's not afraid to speak their mind. And I know I say these things now, and I may go against my word. But this is the person I aspire to be and I'll try my best to be that person."

Roy took this opportunity to stare at her in bewilderment. He was speechless with her maturity and words. He finally understood how she felt about him, but also how she felt about relationships. It was only now where he felt confident than ever he could make her happy. After a few seconds, he was finally able to articulate an answer. "You completely blew me away with what you said."

The Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom smiled once again. She threw him a confident, seductive look. "Come here," she said slyly.

With her stare, she told him to lean forward with her right, index finger, curling it towards her. Roy grinned. There was nothing, but silence in the room as the Pheraen crept closer to the princess on the sofa. He raised his right hand and brushed his hand past Peach's ear, running his fingers though her soft, golden hair. He didn't say anything more before leaning in and giving Peach an affectionate kiss on her lips. She wrapped her arms around his neck, and gently pulling him down on the sofa with her.

Before she knew it, she felt her body sinking more and more comfortably into Roy's body. They laid there together, kissing each other affectionately. He kept kissing the Princess, from her mouth to her neck, and everywhere. With each kiss from Roy Flores, Peach felt as though she was she dancing on a cloud. His kiss told her a lot about him: how much he liked her, how he was sensitive as a human being, how he cared about her, and how he wanted to be with her. When they were finally done being affectionate, the two laid together on the couch. Their two bodies felt like one; the blond could hear his heart beating softly like a steady drum. It calmed her; she felt as though the world was entirely beautiful. As the night went on, she found herself closing her eyes while the redhead did the same. They both had drifted off to sleep with comfort, love, and understanding between them. Tonight, they were finally together: as one, as a couple, and as lovers. This was the most perfect night of Peach's and Roy's life.

* * *

Link was not pleased with his night. So far, he had been bored out of his Goddesses damned mind and desperately wished he was back home at Kokiri Forest where he didn't have to deal with anyone. He wished he was in the solitude he preferred. He could be doing a million other things right now. He could be riding Epona until she was breathing heavily and neighed for some water. Or he could be working on his archery or fencing. Or he could be looking up at the stars with Saria in the Lost Woods. He liked doing that. It gave him some peace and quiet to help clear up his mind from the troubles. And Saria looked at him in this way that made him feel special as though he was the only person who could make her feel safe. That didn't sound too bad. At least he wouldn't have to deal with...

"Link, so tell me about why you decided to enter the Tournament," a Hylian princess asked.

Link tried not to grit his teeth. It was a bad habit. "I needed the money. Let's leave it at that. No more questions." He said abruptly. Zelda's eyes casted down to her lap, focusing on her cloth napkin.

"Okay," she said.

Link scoffed and looked away. He turned away from the princess as he placed his left elbow on the table and rested his jaw in the palm of his hand. He closed his eyes and sighed. Even though this was a dull night, he was pretty tired from having to deal with people. He wasn't allowed to leave until the party was over. The party didn't end until eleven so he'd have to find something to do. He looked around the room.

Falco and Fox were talking in one corner. He never knew what to say to the two Starfox pilots. From his interactions with them, they seemed to be concerned with racing each other to see who was a better pilot. There was Pikachu and Jigglypuff. Unfortunately, he didn't understand half of the things they were saying. Also, whenever he tried to talk to Pikachu, the little Pokemon always believed Link wanted to play with him and so he'd end up either electrocuted or have Pikachu leeched onto his back. Ness and Yoshi seemed to get along quite well with Ness riding the little, green dinosaur like a horse. The psychic boy hooted with glee as he praised Yoshi's fastness.

Link sighed again. There was nothing interesting to do. Unfazed and unamused, he played with the food on his plate. He glanced up at the food table to see if there was anything better served. Oh, the workers of the Super Smash Brothers Mansion were putting away food. Shame. Instead, he glanced at the drinks table. There seemed to be a lot of bottles of drinks and soda still left. The blonde smiled as he rose up from his seat and made his way to there. He looked at his options: cola, lemonade, apple juice, red wine, white wine, beer, water, and... Sparkling Grape Juice? That sounded good. The bottle was sealed, unopened, and probably still fresh.

"Oh hey, Link," said a voice behind him.

"Hm?" He whirled around. It was Fox. He decided he'd be a little bit polite to him. "How are things?"

"Okay, you're going to drink all of that by yourself?" Fox gestured at Link's hand. The Hero of Time grasped the bottle of Sparkling Grape Juice tightly.

"Oh, this?" He raised the bottle in the air. "Yeah, I love this stuff. It's my favorite. I'm surprised that the Master Hand got it this year. I think it's because I complained last year since he didn't have it. I guess he took my request in consideration and made sure they had it this year."

"Ah, cool. Maybe I should do the same if I want more variety of drinks." Fox replied. "What are you doing for the rest of the night?"

"I'm going to head off and drink this stuff alone and think about my future," he said blandly. "What about you?"

"I'm going to see if I can beat Falco's time of flying around this mansion," he said with a wink.

"Have fun."

"Yeah, you too!"

With that, Link quickly walked out the door of the main room and headed off to another lounge room. He unscrewed the top. Strange, the top seemed as though it wouldn't come off easily. It had a cork on the bottle top instead of a cap. He brushed it off since he was thirsty. He grasped the cork firmly in his hand and yanked it off as much as he could. The juice had a weird smell to it, but he shrugged it off. He took one huge gulp. It tasted a bit different for juice...

* * *

"Hey, Fox," Falco said.

"Yeah?"

"Where is the champagne bottle here at the drinks table?" The bird asked curiously as he pushed the other soda bottles away. He moved the other sparling water around, reorganizing every drink at the table. He glanced at every label looking similar to his beloved champagne bottle, reading it carefully in case he misplaced it.

Fox took sip of water and shrugged. "I don't know."

Falco frowned. "I bought the champagne specifically for this event! I normally don't drink alcohol that much, but I figured we'd all celebrate."

"Hey, I have no idea, buddy. But I know Link earlier-... Oh wait... Oh my GOD."

"What?"

"Uhhh... I think Link has your champagne bottle, dude."

* * *

Link had never felt better than this. He knew for sure that this wasn't Sparkling Grape Juice. But it made him feel happier. Here he was: on a couch, just drinking the champagne he mistook, and enjoying life. He liked being alone, drinking his bottle, even though it was considered to be depressing to society. Whatever. They could all fuck themselves in the asses. This champagne had an interesting taste. The champagne fizzed on his tongue while sending a sweet yet slightly tangy taste. It was delicious. He could feel his cheeks burning red. He raised his hand to feel how hot they were, and they were warm like a hot plate. He giggled.

"This is pretty fucking awesome right now," Link said to himself. "I don't have to deal with problems, society, and that princess... I should do this every night until my liver dies! I love you, champagne!" He hugged the bottle tightly to his chest with the dorkiest and giddiest smile on his face. He generously allowed himself another mouthful of champagne.

"Link?" A voice said. Link swallowed the alcohol. Great.

"Link!" Princess Zelda exclaimed as she rushed to his side. "What on earth are you doing here?"

"Isn't it clear?" he droned, raising his bottle in the air. "I'm drinking this lovely bottle and it's making all of my problems better."

"So _that's_ where Falco's champagne bottle went! He asked for us to look for you because he claimed you'd have it. Oh, he's going to be disappointed once he found out you drank it!" Zelda said nervously.

Link took another swig of champagne. "I don't give a _fuck_," he proclaimed before belching very loudly. He patted his stomach.

"Gross," the Princess commented with a bit of a cringed, disgusted face. Not knowing what to do, the Princess decided to seat herself on the coffee table across from Link. She couldn't leave Link alone, drunk and helpless. What if he passed out? What if (though, not likely) gotten alcohol poisoning? Or what if he barfed all over the lounge?

"Ugh," Link said suddenly. He grasped his bottle tighter and held his forehead in his hand.

"What's wrong?" The Princess asked.

"I think I've reached my limit..." Link said softly as the princess stared at him, slightly baffled. He knew what his limit was with drinking? This wasn't good. This meant that Link had been drinking before. Zelda frowned on the idea of the hero having drinking problems.

"I know what you're thinking," the teenage boy said blandly, loudly, and obnoxiously. Zelda's eyes faced him curiously. "I don't have a drinking problem, alright? I don't. I just have a low tolerance."

"I don't think you did?" she told him uncertainly. She wouldn't take his word for it though. Then again, she knew Hylians had a low tolerance for alcohol. However, Link would never admit in a million years that he was a Hylian instead of a Kokiri.

"Meh. You're no fun. Do you know that, Priiinnnccceeeessss?" He asked, putting a childish tone on the last word. He belched again. "Ahhh..."

"Hm," Zelda said. "If that is the case, then perhaps I should leave."

She stood up and adjusted the skirt of her dress. She didn't have to babysit Link Wright if it meant dealing with his mocking. This was unreasonable. Why should she deal with him anyway? He clearly hated her company. She tried, but she was failing at getting Link to open up. With fierce eyes, she began to head for the door until she heard something else:

"No."

He said that one word with abruptness and childishness. It was like that one word told her to stop completely and face him. She looked at the Hero of Time. He had sit up from the couch and hunched his back over with the champagne in his hand. His hair was a mess; it was like a pile of hay: messy and uneven.

"Come over here. I want to tell you something."

He had turned serious all of a sudden. It was as though she had offended him, but she didn't understand what was going through the other Hylian's mind. She stepped forward cautiously until she finally reached him.

"You're a stupid, poopy head!" Link screamed before letting out a low, yet long burp. His face beamed in a satisfactory way. He lifted his legs up on the couch, and his stretched his body out on the couch. He got comfortable before closing his eyes.

"What the fuck!" Zelda exclaimed. "What the fuck is wrong with you? I can't put up with someone like you if you can't tell me what's going on."

She had extremely low patience with Link Wright. The past few days she tried to be as patient as possible with Link. She remembered how she was full of determination that day Saria told her everything about Link's traumatic past. She remembered how she wanted to "help" him. In the end, it was all blowing up in her face with everything she did. She was beginning to think that Link didn't need her help neither did he want it. Then again, it had been clear from the start Link didn't want her help. It seemed he hated her because of it.

"There's a lot of things wrong with me," he answered seriously with his eyes closed. That caught Zelda's attention. She didn't expect him to answer her question.

"You don't even understand that I don't like people. It's not that I don't know how to interact with people. I just don't trust them."

He took another swig of champagne before continuing:

"Everyone just lies, cheats, and deceives. Why would I want to be a part of that? Why be part of a society? Sometimes, people are just so fake. I can just see it in our school. I see Caitlin Russell with her shitloads of make up, and I'm just disgusted. Why do the MRL worship us? I don't know. I just fucking hate it all. High school... it's all just a joke. Nothing is real. Everybody gets so worked up about shit that won't matter in a few years. Everyone knows once you enter a university and start a job, you become closer with those people than the ones in high school. So why should I care? Why should I have to be a part of everything?"

The young Hylian glanced over to see how his Princess was taking all of this information. There had been no comment, noise, or word uttered from the young lady. Zelda sat still through out his whole spiel, stone-cold and blank. She didn't know how to react to Link's cynical comments. Link smirked at himself once he knew that the Princess understood what he was saying all too well.

"You even know it's true, Princess. That's why you can't even utter a word," he said crudely as he took another gulp of his champagne.

But Link didn't even know what was on Zelda's mind.

"You poor thing," she stated clearly.

Link glanced up. He raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"I can understand to an extent of what you are getting at, but I just don't understand at all. Everyone deserves a chance. You can't just judge people by first glance. Surely, some people are what they are. But to cut off everyone else in your life and not depend on anyone... It's impossible. There is a reason why even animals live in packs. They are fully aware that they cannot and will not survive on their own in the wild. It's the same with people. Society exists for a reason. While you don't have to follow all of its orders, you still need to rely on people. If you can't even let people in your life now, you will never be able to let anyone in later. The people who care and you and love you will stick around for you and help out. Honesty and justice will prevail over anything and everything because people can't hide anything from others forever. People have to help each other out; it's just the way this world works. You'll get no where without any support or love. If you do, then you must be filled with hate and vengeance."

It was at this moment where the Princess stared into Link's eyes with understanding, fierceness, yet also compassion. With her gaze, the Hero of Time felt his world stand completely still. He even felt his heartbeat slow down to one beat per minute. He glanced outside the window. He saw the snowflakes dance in the air, making their way to the ground. He wondered how people in the cold can survive all by themselves. Zelda seemed to have a point with everything she said. Winter was the coldest time of the year and it was tough without any help from anyone. He thought about everything she said for a moment.

"You can choose not to believe me. I know I'm not convincing you to go socialize more or be more open, but I speak with experience. I only hope one day you'll believe in what I've said and you will find the people in your life who you can love, depend on, and help... Because, believe me, it's a wondrous thing to have when you have people around you to support you."

She smiled softly with her eyes downcast to the floor. Link's eyes fixed on the princess' face in silence, pondering every sentence she spoke. His mind did wonder how his relationship would change with Roy and Marth if he was more open and outgoing with them. However, Link hated the idea of having to compromise with other people's wishes sometimes. He disliked how he sometimes was forced into doing things he didn't want to do when he was around people. Maybe he was just too afraid all of this time...

"Well, I'll leave you in the solitude you prefer so much, Mr. Link Wright. You know, the winter semi-formal is coming up. I don't think you're interested in dances, but how often will you get to live your life by getting dressed up and dancing when you're older? You're quite good at dancing too. I'm sure someday you'll get a nice, pretty girl to dance with if you just open up more. If I don't see you at the semi-formal, I hope you have a good night alone at home."

With that said, she smiled for the final time and started to make her way to the door. She didn't have any regrets about what she said. She stated her honest opinion and all of her beliefs. Maybe Princess Zelda was a romantic and an idealist, but she didn't care. She knew what made her happy and she believed it would be the same for Link.

"Wait," he said before she made it past the door frame. She turned on her heel. He was still sitting on the couch. His face was serious: he wasn't smiling, but neither was he giving her an icy look. His eyes were soft and alive. He finally was looking at her as though he respected her and wanted her to look at him dead in the eyes. He got up from the couch and walked towards her, still giving her that gaze.

"I'm sorry," he said softly once he had gotten close to her. He didn't know what came over him to say that. Maybe it was the alcohol that influenced him to say that... at least it was honest though. But when Zelda was saying all of those things, there was something deep and down, making him feeling as though he was sinking down and down. It was as though he was spiraling down the drain and couldn't get help from anyone because of his loneliness.

"... I guess I owe you a dance at the semi-formal."

Zelda's eyes widened in shock. What in the Sacred Realm had gotten over him? The corners of his mouth slightly twitched upwards, but it lasted less than one second. Not sure of how to react, she decided to smile sweetly at him. Link's heart skipped a beat.

"Alright," she said to him. "I'm presuming it'll only be one dance and that is all. Well, I'm sorry... But I have to go now. It's getting late and I have to get up early tomorrow for some duties for my father."

She smiled once again before staring him deeply in his eyes.

"Good night, Link."

Without another word, she walked gracefully out the doorway and down the hallway for the night. Link watched her figure become smaller and smaller until she made her way back to the ballroom. What had gotten over him? After she voiced her views, he felt he couldn't avoid her. It was as though she had become a huge part of his life all of a sudden. For both Link and Zelda, this truly had been a strange night.

"... Oh shit. I have to puke."

* * *

**I am finally done with this chapter. I know it's been a year since I've posted, and I apologize for this. The title of the chapter is from an Avenged Sevenfold song. I'm not going to give excuses for why I haven't been updating. Instead, I have posted a public blog post on my LiveJournal about everything that's been going on and why I have neglected writing for so long. If I didn't write as well compared to my last other chapters, I apologize. I truly haven't been writing anything for a long time. **

**Please review! It doesn't matter if it's comment, questions, or criticisms, I'd still like to hear them to have some feedback about how the readers are reacting to the story. Even though I've been on hiatus, I still see people favoriting or alerting my story and it breaks my heart to see nobody comments on them. :(**

**Well, other than that, I hope the next chapter will come out sooner. Please be patient, and don't give up your faith in me!**

**-BKP**


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